University  of  California. 


NOTES 


ON 


THE  BOOK  or  GENESIS. 


BY  C.  H.  M. 


UNIVERSITY 


"  Thing 


old: 


NEW  YORK  : 
LOIZEAUX  BROTHERS,  %  FOURTH  AVENUE. 

1880. 


ALEX.  W.  H.  MACEWE^T, 
P.   O.  Box   2joi, 

SAN  FKANCLSCO,  CAL. 


- 


PEEFATOEY  NOTE 

TO  THE   AMERICAN   EDITION 


As  several  persons  in  America  have,  without  any  au- 
thority whatever  from  me,  undertaken  to  publish  my 
four  volumes  of -"Notes,"  I  deem  it  my  duty  to  inform 
the  reader  that  I  have  given  full  permission  to  Messrs. 
LOIZEAUX  BROTHERS  to  publish  an  edition  of  those  books 
in  such  form  as  they  shall  consider  most  suitable. 


C.  H.  MACKINTOSH. 


6  West  Park  Terrace,  Scarborough. 
May  1st,  1879. 


VI  PREFACE. 

every  divine  requirement  fully  met,  and  a  solid  foundation 
laid  for  present,  settled  peace  in  the  presence  of  divine 
holiness.  Christ,  ''delivered  for  our  offences,  and  raised 
again  for  our  justification,"  settles  everything.  The  mo- 
ment we  believe  the  gospel,  we  are  saved,  and  ought  to 
be  divinely  happy.  "He  that  believeth  on  the  Son  hath 
everlasting  life."  (Rom.  iv.,  v. ;  John  iii.) 

We  see  the  greatness  of  God's  love  to  the  sinner,  in 
His  judgment  of  sin,  in  the  Person  of  His  own  dear  Son, 
on  the  cross.  There,  God,  in  perfect  grace  to  us,  dealt 
with  sin  according  to  His  infinite  holiness  and  justice. 
He  went  down  to  the  depths  of  our  ruin,  and  all  our  sin, 
measured  it,  judged  it,  and  put  it  forever  away — root  and 
branch — by  shedding  the  precious  blood  of  the  spotless 
victim.  "He  condemned  sin  in  the  flesh";  that  is,  He 
there  condemned  the  evil  root  of  sin  which  is  in  our  flesh 
— our  carnal  nature.  But  He  also  "made  an  end  of  sins" 
— of  the  actual  sins  of  every  believer.  Thus,  between 
God  and  Christ  alone,  the  entire  question  of  sin  was  gone 
into,  and  finally  settled  on  the  cross.  "Simon  Peter  said 
unto  Him,  *  Lord,  whither  goest  Thou  ? '  Jesus  answered 
Him,  'Whither  I  go,  thou  canst  not  follow  Me  now."1 "  Just 
as  Abraham  and  Isaac  were  alone  on  the  top  of  the 
mountain  in  the  land  of  Moriah,  so  were  God  and  Christ 
alone,  amidst  the  solemnities  and  solitudes  of  Calvary. 
The  only  part  we  had  in  the  cross  was,  that  our  sins  were 
there.  Jesus  alone  bore  the  full  weight  of  their  judg- 
ment. (Comp.  Dan.  ix.  24 ;  Rom.  viii.  3 ;  2  Cor.  v.  21 ; 
Heb.  ix.  26,  28.) 

Whenever  this  blessed  trutli  is  learnt  from  God's  own 
Word,  and  maintained  in  the  soul  by  faith,  through  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  all  is  peace,  joy  and  victory. 
It  takes  the  believer  completely  away  from  himself,  from 
his  doubts,  fears  and  questions ;  and  his  eye  now  gazes 
on  ONE,  who,  by  His  finished  work,  has  laid  the  founda- 
tion of  divine  and  everlasting  righteousness,  and  who  is 


PREFACE.  Vii 

now  at  the  right  hand  of  the  Majesty  in  the  highest,  as 
the  perfect  definition  of  every  true  believer.  With  Him — 
with  Him  alone — the  believer's  heart  is  now  to  be  oc- 
cupied. 

Faith  is  fully  assured,  that  when  God  puts  away  sin,  it 
must  be  put  away  entirely — that,  when  Jesus  exclaimed, 
"!T  is  FINISHED,"  the  work  was  done,  God  was  glorified, 
the  sinner  saved,  the  whole  power  of  Satan  completely 
destroyed,  and  peace  established  on  the  most  solid  basis. 
Hence,  we  find,  "The  God  of  peace  brought  again  from 
the  dead  our  Lord  Jesus,  that  great  Shepherd  of  the 
sheep,  through  the  blood  of  the  everlasting  covenant." 
He  was  the  God  of  judgment  at  the  cross ;  He  is  the  God 
of  peace  at  the  opening  grave.  Every  enemy  has  been 
vanquished,  and  eternal  peace  proclaimed,  through  the 
blood  of  His  cross.  "He  wras  raised  from  the  dead  by 
the  glory  of  the  Father."  He  rose  "in  the  power  of  an 
endless  life,"  and  associates  every  believer  with  Himself, 
in  the  power  of  that  life  in  resurrection.  Having  been 
cleansed  by  His  blood,  they  are  accepted  in  His  Person. 
(See  Eph.  i.  G;  Col.  ii.  10;'l  John  v.  20.) 

Jesus,  having  thus  fully  accomplished  the  work  that 
was  given  Him  to  do,  and  gone  up  on  high,  the  Holy 
Ghost  came  down  as  a  witness  to  us  that  redemption  was 
finished,  the  believer  "perfected  forever,"  and  Christ 
glorified  in  heaven. 

The  apostles  then  began  to  publish  the  glad  tidings  of 
salvation  to  the  chief  of  sinners.  The  subject  of  their 
preaching  was,  "Jesus  and  the  resurrection";  and  all  who 
believed  on  Him  as  risen  and  glorified  were  immediately 
and  eternally  saved.  "And  this  is  the  record,  that  God 
hath  given  to  us  eternal  life,  and  this  life  is  in  His  Son: 
he  that  hath  the  Son  hath  life,  and  he  that  hath  not  the 
Son  of  God  hath  not  life."  (1  John  v.  11,  12.)  There  is 
no  blessing  outside  of,  or  apart  from,  the  PERSON  OF 
CHRIST — THE  HEAVENLY  MAN;  "for  in  Him  dwelleth  all 


Viii  PREFACE. 

the  fullness  of  the  Godhead  bodily."  Ever  since  that 
time,  God  has  been  placing  before  the  sinner,  in  connec- 
tion with  His  gospel,  a  risen  living  Christ,  as  the  ALOXE 
object  of  faith,  and  "the  end  of  the  law  for  righteousness 

tO  EVERY  ONE  THAT  BELIEVETH."  (Rom.  X.) 

When  the  eye  is  kept  on  this  heavenly  Christ,  all  is 
light,  joy  and  peace ;  but  if  it  be  turned  in  on  self,  and 
occupied  with  what  it  finds  there,  and  what  it  feels,  or 
with  anything  whatever  that  may  come  between  the  heart 
and  Christ,  all  \vill  be  darkness,  uncertainty  and  unhappi- 
ness  in  the  soul.  Oh  !  how  blessedly  simple  is  the  gospel 
of  the  grace  of  God. 

The  burden  of  its  message  to  the  lost  sinner  is,  "Come, 
for  all  things  are  now  ready" ;  the  question  of  sin  is  not 
raised — "  Grace  reigns  through  righteousness  unto  eternal 
life  by  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord."  Christ  having  perfectly 
satisfied  God  about  sin,  the  only  question  now,  between 
God  and  your  heart,  is  this :  Are  you  perfectly  satisfied 
with  His  Christ  as  the  alone  portion  of  your  soul1?  This  is 
the  one  grand  question  of  the  gospel.  Christ  has  settled 
every  other  to  the  glory  of  God,  and  now  the  Father  is 
going  to  "make  a  marriage  for  His  Son,"  to  honor,  exalt 
and  glorify  Him.  Is  your  heart  in  full  harmony  with 
God's  on  this  point  ?  Work  is  not  required  at  your  hands 
— strength  is  not  needed — fruit  is  not  demanded — God  has 
provided  everything,  and  prepared  everything.  It  is  all 
grace — the  pure  grace  of  God — "only  believe."  "Come, 
for  all  things  are  now  ready," — the  marriage  supper,  the 
wedding  garment,  royal  honors,  the  Father's  presence, 
fullness  of  joy,  and  pleasures  for  evermore — all  are  ready, 
— ready  now — "ready  to  be  revealed."  Dear  reader,  are 
you  ready  ?  Oh  !  solemn  question.  Are  you  ready  ? 
Have  you  believed  the  message  ?  Have  you  embraced  the 
Sou  ?  Are  you  ready  to  "crown  Him  Lord  of  all " ?  The 
table  is  spread,  the  house  is  filling  fast,  "yet  there  is 
room."  Already  you  have  heard  the  midnight  cry,  "Be- 


PREFACE.  ix 

hold  the  bridegroom  cometh,  go  ye  out  to  meet  him," 
"and  they  that  were  READY  went  in  with  Mm  to  the  mar- 
riage, AND  THE  DOOR  WAS  SHUT."  "Be  ye  therefore 
ready  also ;  for  the  Son  of  man  cometh  at  an  hour  when 
ye  think  not."  (Matt,  xxii.,  xxv. ;  Luke  xii.,  xiv.) 

But  I  must  now  refer  my  reader  to  the  "Notes"  them- 
selves, where  he  will  find  this  most  blessed  subject  fully, 
frequently  and  pointedly  stated,  and  many  other  subjects 
of  deep  practical  importance,  such  as  the  distinctive  po- 
sition and  perfect  unity  of  the  Church  of  God,  real  saint- 
ship,  practical  discipleship,  sonship,  etc.,  etc. 

With  the  exception  of  the  four  gospels,  I  suppose  there 
is  no  book  in  the  Bible  more  deeply  interesting  than  the 
Book  of  Genesis.  It  comes  to  us  with  all  the  freshness 
of  God's  first  book  to  His  people.  The  contents  are 
varied,  highly  instructive,  and  most  precious  to  the  stu- 
dent of  God's  entire  book. 

These  "Notes"  are  again  laid  at  the  Master's  feet,  in 
earnest  prayer  that  He  would  take  them  up  and  send  them 
forth  under  the  stamp  of  His  own  divine  approval.  Amen. 

A.M. 

London. 


NOTES 

OX 

THE  BOOK  OF 


*f 

^       OF  THE 


TOIVERSITT: 


THERE  is  something  peculiarly  striking  in  the 
manner  in  which  the  Holy  Ghost  opens  this 
sublime  book.  He  introduces  us  at  once  to  God, 
in  the  essential  fullness  of  His  Being,  and  the  soli- 
tariness of  His  acting.  All  prefatory  matter  is 
omitted.  It  is  to  God  we  are  brought.  We  hear 
Him,  as  it  were,  breaking  earth's  silence,  and  shin- 
ing in  upon  earth's  darkness,  for  the  purpose  of 
developing  a  sphere  in  which  He  might  display  His 
eternal  power  and  Godhead. 

There  is  nothing  here  on  which  idle  curiosity  'may 
feed  —  nothing  on  which  the  poor,  human  mind  may 
speculate.  There  is  the  sublimity  and  reality  of 
DIVINE  TRUTH,  in  its  moral  power  to  act  on  the 
heart  and  on  the  understanding.  It  could  never 
come  within  the  range  of  the  Spirit  of  God  to 
gratify  idle  curiosity,  by  the  presentation  of  curious 
theories.  .Geologists  may  explore  the  bowels  of  the 
earth,  and  draw  forth  from  thence  materials  from 
which  to  add  to,  and,  in  some  instances,  to  contra- 


2  GENESIS. 

diet,  the  divine  record.  They  may  speculate  upon 
fossil  remains ;  but  the  disciple  hangs,  with  sacred 
delight,  over  the  page  of  inspiration.  He  reads, 
believes  and  worships.  In  this  spirit  may  we  pur- 
sue our  study  of  the  profound  book  which  now  lies 
open  before  us.  May  we  know  what  it  is  to  "in- 
quire in  the  temple."  May  our  investigations  of 
the  precious  contents  of  holy  scripture  be  ever 
prosecuted  in  the  true  spirit  of  worship. 

"In  the  beginning,  God  created  the  heavens  and 
the  earth."  The  first  sentence  in  the  divine  canon 
sets  us  in  the  presence  of  Him  who  is  the  infinite 
source  of  all  true  blessedness.  There  is  no  elabo- 
rate argument  in  proof  of  the  existence  of  God. 
The  Holy  Ghost  could  not  enter  upon  anything  'of 
the  kind.  God  reveals  Himself.  He  makes  Him- 
self known  by  His  works.  "The  heavens  declare 
the  glory  of  God,  and  the  firmament  showeth  His 
handiwork."  "All  Thy  works  shall  praise  Thee, 
OLord."  "Great  and  marvelous  are  Thy  works, 
Lord  God  Almighty."  None  but  an  infidel  or  an 
atheist  would  seek  an  argument  in  proof  of  the 
Being  of  One  who,  by  the  word  of 'His  mouth, 
called  worlds  into  existence,  and  declared  Himself 
the  All-wise,  the  Almighty,  and  the  everlasting 
God.  Who  but  ' '  God ' '  could  ' '  create ' '  anything  ? 
"Lift  up  your  eyes  on  high,  and  behold  who  hath 
created  these  things,  that  bringeth  out  their  host  by 
number;  He  calleth  them  all  by  names,  b}r  the 
greatness  of  His  might,  for  that  He  is  strong  in 
power;  not  one  faileth."  (Is.  xl.  2G.)  "The  gods 


CHAPTER    I.  3 

of  the  heathen  are  idols,  but  the  Lord  made  the 
heavens."  In  the  Book  of  Job  (chap,  xxxviii.- 
xli. )  we  have  an  appeal  of  the  very  grandest  de- 
scription, on  the  part  of  Jehovah  Himself,  to  the 
work  of  creation,  as  an  unanswerable  argument  in 
proof  of  His  infinite  superiority ;  and  this  appeal, 
while  it  sets  before  the  understanding  the  most 
vivid  and  convincing  demonstration  of  God's  om- 
nipotence, touches  the  heart  also  by  its  amazing 
condescension.  The  majesty  and  the  love,  the 
power  and  the  tenderness,  are  all  divine. 

"And  the  earth  was  without  form,  and  void;  and 
darkness  was  upon  the  face  of  the  deep."  Here 
was,  in  good  truth,  a  scene  in  which  God  alone 
could  act.  Man,  in  the  pride  of  his  heart,  has 
since  proved  himself  but  too  ready  to  interfere  with 
God  in  other  and  far  higher  spheres  of  action  ;  but, 
in  the  scene  before  us,  man  had  no  place  until,  in- 
deed, he  became,  like  all  the  rest,  the  subject  of 
creative  power.  God  was  alone  in  creation.  He 
looked  forth  from  His  eternal  dwelling-place  of  light 
upon  the  wild  waste,  and  there  beheld  the  sphere  in 
which  His  wondrous  plans  and  counsels  were  yet  to 
be  unfolded  and  brought  out — where  the  Second 
Person  of  the  Eternal  Trinity  was  yet  to  live  and 
labor  and  testify  and  bleed  and  die,  in  order  to 
display,  in  the  view  of  wondering  worlds,  the  glo- 
rious perfections  of  the  Godhead.  All  was  dark- 
ness and  chaos ;  but  God  is  the  God  of  light  and 
order.  "God  is  light,  and  in  Him  is  no  darkness 
at  all."  Darkness  and  confusion  cannot  live  in  His 


4  GENESIS. 

presence,  whether  we  look  at  it  in  a  physical,  moral, 
intellectual,  or  spiritual  point  of  view. 

"The  Spirit  of  God  moved  upon  the  face  of  the 
waters.'  He  sat  brooding  over  the  scene  of  His 
future  operations.  A  dark  scene,  truly ;  and  one 
in  which  there  was  ample  room  for  the  God  of  light 
and  life  to  act.  He  alone  could  enlighten  the 
darkness,  cause  life  to  spring  up,  substitute  order 
for  chaos,  open  an  expanse  between  the  waters, 
where  life  might  display  itself  without  fear  of  death. 
These  were  operations  worthy  of  God. 

"God  said,  'Let  there  be  light':  and  there  was 
light."  How  simple!  and  yet  how  Godlike  !  "He 
spake,  and  it  was  done:  He  commanded,  and  it 
stood  fast."  Infidelity  may  ask,  How  ?  where  ? 
when?  The  answer  is,  "By  faith  we  understand 
that  the  worlds  were  framed  by  the  word  of  God, 
so  that  things  which  are  seen  were  not  made  of 
things  which  do  appear."  (Heb.  xi.  3.)  This  sat- 
isfies the  teachable  spirit.  Philosophy  may  smile 
contemptuously  at  this,  and  pronounce  it  rude 
ignorance,  or  blind  credulity,  suitable  enough  for 
an  age  of  semi-barbarism,  but  quite  unworthy  of 
men  living  in  an  enlightened  age  of  the  world's 
history,  when  the  museum  and  the  telescope  have 
put  us  in  possession  of  facts  of  which  the  inspired 
penman  knew  nothing.  What  wisdom  !  What 
learning  !  Yea,  rather,  what  folly  !  What  none- 
sense  !  What  total  inability  to  grasp  the  scope  and 
design  of  sacred  scripture  !  It  assuredly  is  not 
God's  object  to  make  us  astronomers  or  geologists, 


CHAPTER    I.  5 

or  to  occupy  us  with  details  which  the  microscope 
or  the  telescope  lays  before  every  school-boy.  His 
object  is  to  lead  us  into  His  presence,  as  wor- 
shipers, with  hearts  and  understandings  taught  and 
duly  governed  by  His  holy  Word.  But  this  would 
never  do  for  the  so-called  philosopher,  who,  despis- 
ing what  he  terms  the  vulgar  and  narrow-minded 
prejudices  of  the  devout  disciple  of  the  Word, 
boldly  seizes  his  telescope,  and  therewith  scans  the 
distant  heavens,  or  travels  into  the  deep  recesses 
of  earth  in  search  of  strata,  formations  and  fossils 
— all  of  which,  according  to  his  account,  greatly 
improve,  if  they  do  not  flatly  contradict,  the  in- 
spired narrative. 

With  such  "oppositions  of  science,  falsely  so 
called,"  we  have  nothing  to  do.  We  believe  that 
all  true  discoveries,  whether  "in  the  heavens  above, 
in  the  earth  beneath,  or  in  the  waters  under  the 
earth,"  will  harmonize  with  that  which  is  written  in 
the  Word  of  God ;  and  if  they  do  not  thus  har- 
monize, they  are  perfectly  contemptible  in  the  judg- 
ment of  every  true  lover  of  scripture.  This  gives 
great  rest  to  the  heart  in  a  day  like  the  present,  so 
productive  of  learned  speculations  and  high-sound- 
ing theories,  which,  alas  !  in  too  many  instances, 
savor  of  rationalism  and  positive  infidelity.  It  is 
most  needful  to  have  the  heart  thoroughly  estab- 
lished as  to  the  fullness,  the  authority,  the  com- 
pleteness, the  majesty,  the  plenary  inspiration  of 
the  sacred  volume.  This  will  be  found  to  be 
the  only  effectual  safeguard  against  the  rationalism 


G  GENESIS. 

of  Germany  and  the  superstition  of  Rome.  Accu- 
rate acquaintance  with,  and  profound  subjection  to, 
the  Word,  are  the  great  desiderata  of  the  present 
moment.  May  the  Lord,  in  His  great  grace,  abund- 
antly increase  in  our  midst  both  the  one  and  the 
other. 

"And  God  saw  the  light,  that  it  was  good:  and 
God  divided  the  light  from  the  darkness.  And 
God  called  the  light  Day,  and  the  darkness  He 
called  Night."  Here  we  have  the  two  great  sym- 
bols so  largely  employed  throughout  the  Word. 
The  presence  of  light  makes  the  day ;  the  absence 
thereof  makes  the  night.  Thus  it  is  in  the  history 
of  souls.  There  are  "the  sons  of  light"  and  "the 
sons  of  darkness."  This  is  a  most  marked  and 
solemn  distinction.  All  upon  whom  the  light  of  Life 
has  shone — all  who  have  been  effectually  visited  by 
"the  daj^spring  from  on  high" — all  who  have  re- 
ceived the  light  of  the  knowledge  of  the  glory  of 
God  in  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ — all  such,  whoever 
and  wherever  they  may  be,  belong  to  the  first  class, 
are  "the  sons  of  light,  and  the  sons  of  the  day." 

On  the  other  hand,  all  who  are  still  in  nature's 
darkness,  nature's  blindness,  nature's  unbelief — all 
who  have  not  yet  received  into  their  hearts,  by  faith, 
the  cheering  beams  of  the  Sun  of  Righteousness, — 
all  such  are  still  wrapped  in  the  shades  of  spiritual 
night,  are  "the  sons  of  darkness,"  "the  sons  of 
the  night." 

Reader,  pause  and  ask  yourself,  in  the  presence 
of  the  Searcher  of  hearts,  to  which  of  these  two 


CHAPTER    I.  7 

classes  do  you,  at  this  moment,  belong.  That  you 
belong  to  either  the  one  or  the  other  is  beyond  all 
question.  You  may  be  poor,  despised,  unlettered  ; 
but  if,  through  grace,  there  is  a  link  connecting  you 
with  the  Son  of  God— "the  light  of  the  world," 
then  you  arc,  in  very  deed,  a  son  of  the  day,  and 
destined,  ere  long,  to  shine  in  that  celestial  sphere, 
that  region  of  glory,  of  which  "the  slain  Lamb" 
will  be  the  central  sun  forever.  This  is  not  your 
own  doing.  It  is  the  result  of  the  counsel  and 
operation  of  God  Himself,  who  has  given  you  light 
and  life,  joy  and  peace,  in  Jesus  and  His  accom- 
plished sacrifice.  But  if  you  are  a  total  stranger 
to  the  hallowed  action  and  influence  of  divine  light, 
if  your  eyes  have  not  been  opened  to  behold  any 
beauty  in  the  Son  of  God,  then,  though  you  had  all 
the  learning  of  a  Newton,  though  you  were  enriched 
with  all  the  treasures  of  human  philosophy,  though 
you  had  drunk  in  with  avidity  all  the  streams  of 
human  science,  though  your  name  were  adorned 
with  all  the  learned  titles  which  the  schools  and 
universities  of  this  world  could  bestow,  yet  are  you 
"a  son  of  the  night,"  "a  son  of  darkness"  ;  and, 
if  you  die  in  your* present  condition,  you  will  be 
involved  in  the  blackness  and  horror  of  an  eternal 
night.  Do  not,  therefore,  my  friend,  read  another 
page  until  you  have  fully  satisfied  yourself  as  to 
whether  you  belong  to  the  "day"  or  the  "night." 

The  next  point  on  which  I  would  dwell  is  the 
creation  of  lights.     "And  God  said,  'Let  there  be 
lights  in  the  firmament  of  the  heaven,  to  divide  'the 
2 


8  GENESIS. 

day  from  the  night ;  and  let  them  be  for  signs,  and 
for  seasons,  and  for  days,  and  3rcars.  And  let  them 
be  for  lights  in  the  firmament  of  the  heaven,  to  give 
light  upon  the  earth ' :  and  it  was  so.  And  God 
made  two  great  lights :  the  greater  light  to  rule  the 
day,  and  the  lesser  light  to  rule  the  night:  He 
made  the  stars  also." 

The  sun  is  the  great  centre  of  light,  and  the 
centre  of  our  system.  Round  him  the  lesser  orbs 
revolve.  From  him,  too,  they  derive  their  light. 
Hence  he  may  very  legitimately  be  viewed  as  an  apt 
symbol  of  Him  who  is  soon  to  arise,  with  healing  in 
His  wings,  to  gladden  the  hearts  of  those  that  fear 
the  Lord.  The  aptness  and  beauty  of  the  symbol 
would  fully  appear  to  one  who,  having  spent  the 
night  in  watching,  beholds  the  rising  sun  gilding, 
with  his  bright  beams,  the  eastern  sky. 

The  mists  and  shades  .of  night  are  all  dispersed, 
and  the  whole  creation  seems  to  hail  the  returning 
orb  of  light.  Thus  will  it  be,  by  and  by,  when  the 
Sun  of  Righteousness  arises.  The  shadows  of  night 
shall  flee  away,  and  the  whole  creation  shall  be 
gladdened  by  the  dawning  of  "  a  morning  without 
clouds," — the  opening  of  a  bright  and  never-ending 
day  of  glory. 

The  moon,  being  in  herself  opaque,  derives  all 
her  light  from  the  sun.  She  always  reflects  the 
sun's  light,  save  when  earth  and  its  influences  inter- 
vene.* No  sooner  has  the  sun  sunk  beneath  our 

*  It  is  an  intei'esting  fact  that  the  moon,  as  viewed  through  a 
powerful  telescope,  presents  the  appearance  of  one  vast  ruin  of 
nature. 


CHAPTER    I.  9 

horizon  than  the  moon  presents  herself  to  receive 
his  beams  and  reflect  them  back  upon  a  dark  world ; 
or  should  she  be  visible  during  the  day,  she  always 
exhibits  a  pale  light,  the  necessary  result  of  appear- 
ing in  the  presence  of  superior  brightness.  True  it 
is,  as  has  been  remarked,  the  world  sometimes  in- 
tervenes ;  dark  clouds,  thick  mists,  and  chilling 
vapors  too,  arise  from  earth's  surface,  and  hide 
from  our  view  her  silvery  light. 

Now,  as  the  sun  is  a  beautiful  and  an  appropriate 
symbol  of  Christ,  so  the  moon  strikingly  reminds 
us  of  the  Church.  The  fountain  of  her  light  is 
hidden  from  view.  The  world  seeth  Him  not,  but 
she  sees  Him ;  and  she  is  responsible  to  reflect 
His  beams  upon  a  benighted  world.  The  world  has 
no  other  way  in  which  to  learn  anything  of  Christ 
but  by  the  Church.  "Ye,"  says  the  inspired  apos- 
tle, "are  our  epistle,  .  .  .  known  and  read  of 
all  men."  And  again,  "Forasmuch  as  ye  are 
manifestly  declared  to  be  the  epistle  of  Christ." 
(2  Cor.  iii.  2,  3.) 

What  a  responsible  place !  How  earnestly  should 
she  watch  against  everything  that  would  hinder  the 
reflection  of  the  heavenly  light  of  Christ,  in  all  her 
ways  !  But  how  is  she  to  reflect  this  light  ?  By 
allowing  it  to  shine  upon  her,  in  its  undimmed 
brightness.  If  the  Church  only  walked  in  the  light 
of  Christ,  she  would  assuredly  reflect  His  light; 
and  this  would  ever  keep  her  in  her  proper  position. 
The  light  of  the  moon  is  not  her  own.  So  is  it 
with  the  Church,  She  is  not  called  to  set  herself 


10  GENESIS. 

before  the  world.  She  is  a  simple  debtor  to  reflect 
the  light  which  she  herself  receives.  She  is  bound 
to  study,  with  holy  diligence,  the  path  which  He 
trod  while  down  here,  and,  by  the  energy  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  who  dwells  in  her,  to  follow  in  that 
path.  But,  alas  !  earth,  with  its  mists,  its  clouds 
and  its  vapors,  intervenes,  and  hides  the  light  and 
blots  the  epistle.  The  world  can  see  but  little  of 
the  traits  of  Christ's  character  in  those  who  call 
themselves  by  His  name;  yea,  in  many  instances 
they  exhibit  a  humbling  contrast  rather  than  a  re- 
semblance. May  we  study  Christ  more  prayerfully, 
that  so  we  may  copy  Him  more  faithfully. 

The  stars  are  distant  lights.  They  shine  in  other 
spheres,  and  have  little  connection  with  this  system, 
save  that  their  twinkling  can  be  seen.  "One  star 
cliff  ere  th  from  another  star  in  glory."  Thus  will  it 
be  in  the  coming  kingdom  of  the  Son.  He  will 
shine  forth  in  living  and  everlasting  lustre.  His 
body,  the  Church,  will  faithfully  reflect  His  beams 
on  all  around,  while  the  saints  individually  shall 
shine  in  those  spheres  which  a  righteous  Judge  shall 
allot  to  them,  as  a  reward  of  faithful  service  during 
the  dark  night  of  His  absence.  This  thought  should 
animate  us  to  a  more  ardent  and  vigorous  pursuit 
after  conformity  to  our  absent  Lord.  (See  Luke 
xix.  12-19.) 

The  lower  orders  of  creation  are  next  introduced. 
The  sea  and  the  earth  are  made  to  teem  with  life. 
Some  may  feel  warranted  in  regarding  the  opera- 
tions of  each  successive  day,  as  foreshadowing  the 


CHAPTER    I.  11 

various  dispensations,  and  their  great  characteristic 
principles  of  action.  I  would  only  remark,  as  to 
this,  that  there  is  a  great  need,  when  handling  the 
Word  in  this  way,  to  watch,  with  holy  jealousy,  the 
working  of  imagination ;  and  also  to  pay  strict  at- 
tention to  the  general  analogy  of  scripture,  else  we 
may  make  sad  mistakes.  I  do  not  feel  at  liberty  to 
enter  upon  such  a  line  of  interpretation ;  I  shall 
therefore  confine  myself  to  what  I  believe  to  be  the 
plain  sense  of  the  sacred  text. 

We  shall  now  consider  man's  place,  as  set  over 
the  works  of  God's  hands.  All  having  been  set  in 
order,  one  was  needed  to  take  the  headship.  "And 
God  said,  'Let  us  make  man  in  our  image,  after 
our  likeness ;  and  let  them  have  dominion  over  the 
fish  of  the  sea,  and  over  the  fowl  of  the  air,  and 
over  the  cattle,  and  over  all  the  earth,  and  over 
every  creeping  thing  that  creepeth  upon  the  earth.' 
So  God  created  man  in  His  own  image,  in  the  image 
of  God  created  He  him ;  male  and  female  created 
He  them.  And  God  blessed  them,  and  God  said 
unto  them,  '  Be  fruitful  and  multiply,  and  replenish 
the  earth,  and  subdue  it ;  and  have  dominion  over 
the  fish  of  the  sea,  and  over  the  fowl  of  the  air, 
and  over  every  living  thing  that  moveth  upon  the 
earth. ' '  My  reader  will  observe  the  change  from 
' '  him  "  to  "  them . ' '  We  are  not  presented  with  the 
actual  fact  of  the  formation  of  the  woman  until  the 
next  chapter;  though  here  we  find  God  blessing 
"them,"  and  giving  "them"  jointly  the  place  of 
universal  government.  All  the  inferior  orders  of 


12  GENESIS. 

creation  were  set  under  their  joint  dominion.  Eve 
received  all  her  blessings  in  Adam :  in  him,  too,  she 
got  her  dignity.  Though  not  yet  called  into  actual 
existence,  she  was,  in  the  purpose  of  God,  looked 
at  as  part  of  the  man.  ' '  In  Thy  book  were  all  my 
members  written,  which  in  continuance  were  fash- 
ioned, when  as  yet  there  was  none  of  them." 

Thus  it  is  with  the  Church — the  bride  of  the 
Second  Man.  She  was  viewed  from  all  eternity  in 
Christ,  her  Head  and  Lord ;  as  we  read  in  the  first 
chapter  of  Ephesians,  "According  as  He  hath 
chosen  us  in  Him,  before  the  foundation  of  the 
world,  that  we  should  be  holy  and  without  blame 
before  Him  in  love."  Before  a  single  member  of 
the  Church  had  yet  breathed  the  breath  of  life,  all 
were,  in  God's  eternal  mind,  "predestinated  to  be 
conformed  to  the  image  of  His  Son."  The  coun- 
sels of  God  render  the  Church  necessary  to  com- 
plete the  mystic  man.  Hence  the  Church  is  called 
"the  fullness  [ntypcojua]  of  Him  that  filleth  all  in 
all."  This  is  an  amazing  title,  and  it  develops 
much  of  the  dignity,  importance  and  glory  of  the 
Church. 

It  is  too  common  to  view  redemption  as  bearing 
merely  upon  the  blessedness  and  security  of  indi- 
vidual souls.  This  is  entirely  too  low  a  view  to 
take  of  the  matter.  That  all  which  pertains  in  any 
way  to  the  individual  is,  in  the  fullest  manner,  se- 
cured, is,  blessed  be  God,  most  true.  This  is  the 
least  part  of  redemption.  But  that  Christ's  glory 
is  involved  in,  and  connected  with,  the  Church's 


CHAPTER    I.  13 

existence,  is  a  truth  of  far  more  dignity,  depth  and 
power.  If  I  am  entitled,  on  the  authority  of  Holy 
Scripture,  to  regard  myself  as  a  constituent  part  of 
that  which  is  actually  needful  to  Christ,  I  can  no 
longer  entertain  a  doubt  as  to  whether  there  is  the 
fullest  provision  for  all  my  personal  necessities. 
And  is  not  the  Church  thus  needful  to  Christ  ?  Yes, 
truly.  "It  is  not  good  that  the  man  should  be 
alone;  I  will  make  him  an  helpmeet  for  him." 
And,  again,  "For  the  man  is  not  of  the-  woman; 
but  the  woman  of  the  man.  Neither  was  the  man 
created  for  the  woman  ;  but  the  woman  for  the  man. 
.  .  .  Nevertheless,  neither  is  the  man  without 
the  woman,  neither  the  woman  without  the  man  in 
the  Lord.  For  as  the  woman  is  of  the  man,  even 
so  is  the  man  also  by  the  woman  ;  but  all  things  of 
God."  (1  Cor.  xi.  8-12.)  Hence,  it  is  no  longer 
the  mere  question  whether  God  can  save  a  poor, 
helpless  sinner — whether  He  can  blot  out  his  sins, 
and  receive  him  in  the  power  of  divine  righteous- 
ness. God  has  said,  "It  is  not  good  that  the  man 
should  be  alone."  He  left  not  "the  first  man" 
without  "an  helpmeet";  neither  would  He  leave 
the  "Second."  As,  in  the  case  of  the  former, 
there  would  have  been  a  blank  in  the  creation  with- 
out Eve,  so, — stupendous  thought  ! — in  the  case  of 
the  latter,  there  would  be  a  blank  in  the  new  crea- 
tion without  the  Bride — the  Church. 

Let  us  now  look  at  the  manner  in  which  Eve  was 
brought  into  being,  though,  in  so  doing,  we  shall 
have  to  anticipate  part  of  the  contents  of  the  next 


14  GENESIS. 

chapter.  Throughout  all  the  orders  of  creation 
there  was  not  found  a  helpmeet  for  Adam.  UA 
deep  sleep"  must  fall  on  him,  and  a  partner  be 
formed,  out  of  himself,  to  share  his  dominion  and 
his  blessedness.  "And  the  Lord  God  caused  a 
deep  sleep  to  fall  upon  Adam,  and  he  slept:  and 
He  took  one  of  his  ribs,  and  closed  up  the  flesh 
instead  thereof.  And  the  rib,  which  the  Lord  God 
had  taken  from  man,  builded*  He  a  woman,  and 
brought  her  unto  the  man.  And  Adam  said,  4This 
is  now  bone  of  my  bones,  and  flesh  of  my  flesh  ;  she 
shall  be  called  Woman,  because  she  was  taken  out 
of  man.'  "  (Chap.  ii.  21-23.) 

Looking  at  Adam  and  Eve  as  a  type  of  Christ 
and  the  Church,  as  Scripture  fully  warrants  us  to 
do,  we  see  how  that  the  death  of  Christ  needed  to 
be  an  accomplished  fact  ere  the  Church  could  be 
set  up ;  though,  in  the  purpose  of  God,  she  was 
looked  at  and  chosen  in  Christ  before  the  founda- 
tion of  the  world.  There  is,  however,  a  vast  differ- 
ence between  the  secret  purpose  of  God  and  the 
revelation  and  accomplishment  thereof.  Before  the 
divine  purpose  could  be  actualized  in  reference  to 
the  constituent  parts  of  the  Church,  it  wras  neces- 
sary that  the  Son  should  be  rejected  and  crucified, 
— that  He  should  take  His  seat  on  high, — that  He 


*The  Hebrew  word  which  is  rendered  "builded "in  the  margin, 
is  j|j^  which  the  LXX  render  by  osxoSof^EdKV,  A  reference  to 
the  original  of  Eph.  ii.  20,  22  will  show  the  reader  that  the  words 
rendered  "built"  and  "builded  together"  are  inllections  of  the 
verb. 


CHAPTER    I.  15 

should  send  down  the  Holy  Ghost  to  baptize  be- 
lievers into  one  body.  It  is  not  that  souls  were 
not  quickened  and  saved  previous  to  the  death  of 
Christ.  They  assuredly  were.  Adam  was  saved, 
and  thousands  of  others,  from  age  to  age,  in  virtue 
of  the  sacrifice  of  Christ,  though  that  sacrifice  was 
not  yet  accomplished.  But  the  salvation  of  indi- 
vidual souls  is  one  thing,  and  the  formation  of  the 
Church,  as  a  distinctive  thing,  by  the  Holy  Ghost, 
is  quite  another. 

This  distinction  is  not  sufficiently  attended  to ; 
and  even  where  it  is  in  theory  maintained,  it  is 
accompanied  with  but  little  of  those  practical  results 
which  might  naturally  be  expected  to  flow  from  a 
truth  so  stupendous.  The  Church's  unique  place — • 
her  special  relationship  to  "the  Second  Man,  the 
Lord  from  heaven  " — her  distinctive  privileges  and 
dignities — all  these  would,  if  entered  into  by  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  produce  the  richest,  the 
rarest  and  the  most  fragrant  fruits.  (See  Eph.  v. 
23-32.) 

When  we  look  at  the  type  before  us,  we  may  form 
some  idea  of  the  results  which  ought  to  follow  from 
the  understanding  of  the  Church's  position  and 
relationship.  "What  affection  did  not  Eve  owe  to 
Adam  !  What  nearness  she  enjoyed  !  What  inti- 
macy of  communion.  What  full  participation  in  all 
his  thoughts  !  In  all  his  dignity,  and  in  all  his 
glory,  she  was  entirely  one,  lie  did  not  rule  over, 
but  with  her.  He  was  lord  of  the  whole  creation, 
and  she  was  one  with  him.  Yea,  as  has  already 


16  GENESIS. 

been  remarked,  she  was  looked  at  and  blessed  in 
him.  "The  man"  was  the  object;  and  as  to  "the 
woman,"  she  was  needful  to  him,  and  therefore  she 
was  brought  into  being.  Nothing  can  be  more  pro- 
foundly interesting  as  a  type.  Man  first  set  up, 
and  the  woman  viewed  in,  and  then  formed  out  of, 
him, — all  this  forms  a  type  of  the  most  striking  and 
instructive  character.  Not  that  a  doctrine  can  ever 
be  founded  upon  a  type ;  but  when  we  find  the  doc- 
trine fully  and  clearly  laid  down  in  other  parts  of 
the  Word,  we  are  then  prepared  to  understand, 
appreciate  and  admire  the  type. 

The  eighth  psalm  furnishes  a  fine  view  of  man  set 
over  the  work  of  God's  hands, — "When  I  consider 
Thy  heavens,  the  work  of  Thy  fingers ;  the  moon 
and  the  stars  which  Thou  hast  ordained:  what  is 
man  that  Thou  art  mindful  of  him  ?  and  the  son  of 
man  that  Thou  visitest  him  ?  For  Thou  hast  made 
him  a  little  lower  than  the  angels,  and  hast  crowned 
him  with  glory  aud  honor.  Thou  madest  him  to 
have  dominion  over  the  works  of  Thy  hands ;  Thou 
hast  put  all  things  under  his  feet, — all  sheep  and 
oxen,  yea,  and  the  beasts  of  the  field,  the  fowl  of 
the  air,  and  the  fish  of  the  sea,  and  whatsoever 
passeth  through  the  paths  of  the  sea."  Here,  man 
is  looked  at  without  any  distinctive  mention  of  the 
woman ;  and  this  is  quite  in  character,  for  the 
woman  is  looked  at  in  the  man. 

There  is  no  direct  revelation  of  the  mystery  of 
the  Church  in  any  part  of  the  Old  Testament.  The 
apostle  expressly  says,  "In  other  ages  it  was  not 


CHAPTER    I.  17 

made  known  to  the  sons  of  men  as  it  is  now  revealed 
unto  His  holy  apostles  and  prophets  (of  the  New 
Testament)  by  the  Spirit."  (Eph.  iii.  1-11.)  Hence, 
in  the  psalm  just  quoted,  we  have  only  "the  man" 
presented  to  us  ;  but  we  know  that  the  man  and  the 
woman  are  looked  at  under  one  head.  All  this  will 
find  its  full  antitype  in  the  ages  to  come.  Then 
shall  the  True  Man — the  Lord  from  heaven — take 
His  seat  on  the  throne,  and,  in  companionship  with 
His  bride — the  Church — rule  over  a  restored  crea- 
tion. This  Church  is  quickened  out  of  the  grave  of 
Christ,  is  part  "of  His  body,  of  His  flesh,  and  of 
His  bones."  He  the  Head  and  she  the  body,  mak- 
ing one  Man,  as  we  read  in  the  fourth  chapter  of 
Ephesfans, — "Till  we  all  come,  in  the  unity  of  the 
faith,  and  of  the  knowledge  of  the  Son  of  God, 
unto  a  perfect  man,  unto  the  measure  of  the  staturo 
of  the  fullness  of  Christ."  The  Church,  being  thus 
part  of  Christ,  will  occupy  a  place  in  the  glory 
quite  unique.  There  was  no  other  creature  so  near 
to  Adam  as  Eve,  because  no  other  creature  was  part 
of  himself.  So  in  reference  to  the  Church,  she  will 
hold  the  very  nearest  place  to  Christ  in  His  coming 
glory. 

Nor  is  it  merely  what  the  Church  will  be  that 
commands  our  admiration,  but  what  the  Church  is. 
She  is  now  the  body  of  which  Christ  is  the  Head ; 
she  is  now  the  temple  of  which  God  is  the  Inhabit- 
ant. Oh  !  what  manner  of  people  ought  we  to  be  ? 
If  such  is  the  present,  such  the  future  dignity  of 
that  of  which  we,  through  God's  grace,  form  a  part, 


18  GENESIS. 

surely  a  holy,  a  devoted,  a  separated,  an  elevated 
walk  is  what  becomes  us. 

May  the  Holy'  Ghost  unfold  these  things  more 
fully  and  powerfully  to  our  hearts,  that  so  we  may 
have  a  deeper  sense  of  the  conduct  and  character 
which  are  worthy  of  the  high  vocation  wherewith 
we  are  called.  "The  eyes  of  your  understanding 
being  enlightened ;  that  ye  may  know  what  is  the 
hope  of  His  calling,  and  what  the  riches  of  the 
glory  of  His  inheritance  in  the  saints,  and  what  the 
exceeding  greatness  of  His  power  to  nsward  who 
believe,  according  to  the  working  of  His  mighty 
power,  which  He  wrought  in  Christ  when  He  raised 
Him  from  the  dead,  and  set  Him  at  His  own  right 
hand  in  the  heavenly 'places,  far  above  all  "princi- 
pality and  power  and  might  and  dominion  and 
every  name  that  is  named,  not  only  in  this  world, 
but  also  in  that  which  is  to  come  ;  and  hath  put  all 
things  under  His  feet,  and  gave  Him  to  be  the 
Head  over  all  things  to  the  Church,  which  is  His 
body,  the  fullness  of  Him  that  filleth  all  in  all." 
(Eph.  i.  18-23.) 


CHAPTER  II. 

THIS  chapter  introduces  to  our  notice  two  prom- 
inent subjects,  namely,  "the  seventh  day"  and 
4 'the  river."      The  first  of  these  demands  special 
attention. 

There  are  few  subjects  on  which  so  much  mis- 
understanding and  contradiction  prevails  as  the 
doctrine  of  "the  Sabbath."  Not  that  there  is  the 
slightest  foundation  for  either  the  one  or  the  other ; 
for  the  whole  subject  is  laid  down  in  the  Word  in  the 
simplest  possible  manner.  The  distinct  command- 
ment to  "keep  holy  the  Sabbath  day"  will  come 
before  us,  the  Lord  permitting,  in  our  meditations 
on  the  book  of  Exodus.  In  the  chapter  now  before 
us,  there  is  no  command  given  to  man  whatever, 
but  simply  the  record  that  "God  rested  on  the 
seventh  day."  "Thus  the  heavens  and  the  earth 
were  finished,  and  all  the  host  of  them.  And  on 
the  seventh  day  God  ended  His  work  which  He  had 
made ;  and  He  rested  on  the  seventh  day  from  all 
His  work  which  He  had  made.  And  God  blessed 
the  seventh  day,  and  sanctified  it ;  because  that  in 
it  He  had  rested  from  all  His  work  which  God 
created  and  made."  There  is  no  commandment 
given  to  man  here.  We  are  simply  told  that  God 
enjoyed  His  rest,  because  all  was  done,  so  far  as 
the  mere  creation  was  concerned.  There  was  no- 
thing more  to  be  done,  and  therefore  the  One  who 


20  GENESIS. 

had,  during  six  days,  been  working,  ceased  to  work, 
and  enjoyed  His  rest.  All  was  complete ;  all  was 
very  good  ;  all  was  just  as  He  Himself  had  made  it ; 
and  He  rested  in  it.  "The  morning  stars  sang  to- 
gether, and  all  the  sons  of  God  shouted  for  joy." 
The  work  of  creation  was  ended,  and  God  was 
celebrating  a  Sabbath. 

And,  be  it  observed,  that  this  is  the  true  charac- 
ter of  a  Sabbath.  This  is  the  only  Sabbath  which 
God  ever  celebrated,  so  far  as  the  inspired  record 
instructs  us.  After  this,  we  read  of  God's  com- 
manding man  to  keep  the  Sabbath,  and  man  utterly 
failing  so  to  do  ;  but  we  never  read  again  the  words, 
"God  rested"  ;  on  the  contrary,  the  word  is,  "My 
Father  worketh  hitherto,  and  I  work."  (John  v.  17.) 
The  Sabbath,  in  the  strict  and  proper  sense  of  the 
term,  could  only  be  celebrated  when  there  really 
was  nothing  to  be  done.  It  could  only  be  celebra- 
ted amid  an  undeh'led  creation  —a  creation  on  which 
no  spot  of  sin  could  be  discerned.  God  can  have 
no  rest  where  there  is  sin  ;  and  one  has  only  to  look 
around  him  in  order  to  learn  the  total  impossibility 
of  God's  enjoying  a  rest  in  creation  now.  The 
thorn  and  the  thistle,  together  with  the  ten  thousand 
other  melancholy  and  humiliating  fruits  of  a  groan- 
ing creation,  rise  before  us,  and  declare  that  God 
must  be  at  work  and  not  at  rest.  Could  God  rest  in 
the  midst  of  thorns  and  briars  ?  Could  He  rest 
amid  the  sighs  and  tears,  the  groans  and  sorrows, 
the  sickness  and  death,  the  degradation  and  guilt  of 
a  ruined  world  !  Could  God  sit  down,  as  it  were, 


CHAPTER    II.  21 

and  celebrate  a  Sabbath  in  the  midst  of  such  cir- 
cumstances ? 

Whatever  answer  may  be  given  to  these  questions, 
the  Word  of  God  teaches  us  that  God  has  had  no 
Sabbath  as  yet,  save  the  one  which  the  second  of 
Genesis  records.  "The  seventh  clay,"  and  none 
other,  was  the  Sabbath.  It  showed  forth  the  com- 
pleteness of  creation  work ;  but  creation  work  is 
marred,  and  the  seventh  day  rest  interrupted ;  and 
thus,  from  the  fall  to  the  incarnation,  God  was 
working ;  from  the  incarnation  to  the  cross,  God 
the  Son  was  working ;  and  from  Pentecost  until 
now,  God  the  Holy  Ghost  has  been  working. 

Assuredly,  Christ  had  no  Sabbath  when  He  was 
upon  this  earth.  True,  He  finished  His  work — 
blessedly,  gloriously  finished  it — but  where  did  He 
spend  the  Sabbath  day  ?  In  the  tomb  !  Yes,  my 
reader,  the  Lord  Christ — God  manifest  in  the  flesh, 
the  Lord  of  the  Sabbath,  the  Maker  and  Sustainer 
of  heaven  and  earth — spent  the  seventh  day  in  the 
dark  and  silent  tomb.  Has  this  no  voice  for  us  ? 
Does  it  convey  no  teaching  ?  Could  the  Son  of  God 
lie  in  the  grave  on  the  seventh  clay  if  that  day  were 
to  be  spent  in  rest  and  peace,  and  in  the  full  sense 
that  nothing  remained  to  be  done  ?  Impossible  ! 
We  want  no  further  proof  of  the  impossibility  of 
celebrating  a  Sabbath  than  that  which  is  afforded  at 
the  grave  of  Jesus.  We  may  stand  beside  that 
grave  amazed  to  find  it  occupied  by  such  an  one  on 
the  seventh  day ;  but,  oh  !  the  reason  is  obvious. 
Man  is  a  fallen,  ruined,  guilty  creature.  His  long 


22  GENESIS. 

career  of  guilt  has  ended  in  crucifying  the  Lord  of 
glory ;  and  not  only  crucifying  Him,  but  placing,  a 
great  stone  at  the  mouth  of  the  tomb,  to  prevent,  if 
possible,  His  leaving  it. 

And  what  was  man  doing  while  the  Son  of  God 
was  in  the  grave  ?  He  was  observing  the  Sabbath 
day  !  What  a  thought !  Christ  in  His  grave  to 
repair  a  broken  Sabbath,  and  yet  man  attempting 
to  keep  the  Sabbath  as  though  it  were  not  broken  at 
all !  It  was  man's  Sabbath,  and  not  God's.  It 
was  a  Sabbath  without  Christ — an  empty,  powerless, 
worthless,  because  Christless  and  Godless,  form. 

But  some  will  say,  The  day  has  been  changed, 
while  all  the  principles  belonging  to  it  remain  the 
same.  I  do  not  believe  that  Scripture  furnishes 
any  foundation  for  such  an  idea.  Where  is  the 
divine  warrant  for  such  a  statement  ?  Surely,  if 
there  is  Scripture  authority,  nothing  can  be  easier 
than  to  produce  it.  But  the  fact  is,  there  is  none  ; 
on  the  contrary,  the  distinction  is  most  fully  main- 
tained in  the  New  Testament.  Take  one  remark- 
able passage,  in  proof, — "In  the  end  of  the  Sabbath, 
as  it  began  to  dawn  towards  the  first  day  of  the 
week."  (Matt,  xxviii.  1.)  There  is,  evidently,  no 
mention  here  of  the  seventh  day  being  changed  to 
the  first  day ;  nor  yet  of  any  transfer  of  the  Sabbath 
from  the  one  to  the  other.  The  first  day  of  the 
week  is  not  the  Sabbath  changed,  but  altogether  a 
new  day.  It  is  the  first  day  of  a  new  period,  and 
not  the  last  day  of  an  old.  The  seventh  day  stands 
connected  with  earth  and  earthly  rest ;  the  first 


CHAPTER    II.  23 

day  of  the  week,  on  the  contrary,  introduces  us  to 
heaven  and  heavenly  rest. 

This  makes  a  vast  difference  in  the  principle ; 
and  when  we  look  at  the  matter  in  a  practical  point 
of  view,  the  difference  is  most  material.  If  I  cele- 
brate the  seventh  day,  it  marks  me  as  an  earthly 
man,  inasmuch  as  that  day  is  clearly  the  rest  of 
earth — creation  rest ;  but  if  I  am  taught  by  the 
Word  and  Spirit  of  God  to  understand  the  meaning 
of  the  first  day  of  the  week,  I  shall  at  once  appre- 
hend its  immediate  connection  with  that  new  and 
heavenly  order  of  things,  of  which  the  death  and 
resurrection  of  Christ  form  the  everlasting  founda- 
tion. The  seventh  day  appertained  to  Israel  and  to 
earth :  the  first  day  of  the  week  appertains  to  the 
Church  and  to  heaven.  Further,  Israel  was  com- 
manded to  observe  the  Sabbath  day :  the  Church  is 
privileged  to  enjoy  the  first  day  of  the  week.  The 
former  was  the  test  of  Israel's  moral  condition  ;  the 
latter  is  the  significant  proof  of  the  Church's  eternal 
acceptance.  That  made  manifest  what  Israel  could 
do  for  God :  this  perfectly  declares  what  God  has 
done  for  us. 

It  is  quite  impossible  to  over-estimate  the  value 
and  importance  of  the  Lord's  day  [77  Hvpiau^  yjuepa'], 
as  the  first  day  of  the  week  is  termed,  in  the  first 
chapter  of  the  Apocalypse.  Being  the  day  on 
which  Christ  rose  from  the  dead,  it  sets  forth,  not 
the  completion  of  creation,  but  the  full  and  glorious 
triumph  of  redemption.  Nor  should  we  regard  the 
celebration  of  the  first  day  of  the  week  as  a  matter 
3 


24  GENESIS. 

of  bondage,  or  as  a  yoke  put  on  the  neck  of  a 
Christian.  It  is  bis  delight  to  celebrate  that  happy 
day.  Hence  we  find  that  the  first  day  of  the  week 
was  pre-eminently  the  day  on  which  the  early  Chris- 
tians came  together  to  break  bread  ;  and  at  that 
period  of  the  Church's  history,  the  distinction  be- 
tween the  Sabbath  and  the  first  day  of  the  week 
was  fully  maintained.  The  Jews  celebrated  the 
former  by  assembling  in  their  synagogues  to  read 
"the  law  and  the  prophets";  the  Christians  cele- 
brated the  latter  by  assembling  to  break  bread. 
There  is  not  so  much  as  a  single  passage  of  Scrip- 
ture in  which  the  first  day  of  the  week  is  called  the 
Sabbath  day,  whereas  there  is  the  most  abundant 
proof  of  their  entire  distinctness. 

Why,  therefore,  contend  for  that  which  has  no 
foundation  in  the  Word  ?  Love,  honor  and  cele- 
brate the  Lord's  day  as  much  as  possible ;  seek, 
like  the  apostle,  to  be  "in  the  spirit"  thereon;  let 
your  retirement  from  secular  matters  be  as  profound 
as  ever  3-011  can  make  it ;  but,  while  you  do  all  this, 
call  it  by  its  proper  name  ;  give  it  its  proper  place  ; 
understand  its  proper  principles ;  attach  to  it  its 
proper  characteristics ;  and,  above  all,  do  not  bind 
down  the  Christian,  as  with  an  iron  rule,  to  observe 
the  seventh  day,  when  it  is  his  high  and  holy  privi- 
lege to  observe  the  first.  Do  not  bring  him  down 
from  heaven,  wrhere  he  can  rest,  to  a  cursed  and 
blood-stained  earth,  where  he  cannot.  Do  not  ask 
him  to  keep  a  day  which  his  Master  spent  in  the 
tomb,  instead  of  that  blessed  day  on  which  He  left 


CHAPTER    II.  25 

it.  (Sec,  carefully,  Matt,  xxviii.  1-G ;  Mark  xvi. 
1,  2;  Luke  xxiv.  1  ;  John  xx.  1,  19,  26;  Acts  xx. 
7  ;  1  Cor.  xvi.  2  ;  Rev.  i.  10 ;  Acts  xiii.  14  ;  xvii. 
2;  Col.  ii.  16.) 

But  let  it  not  be  supposed  that  we  lose  sight  of 
the  important  fact  that  the  Sabbath  will  again  be 
celebrated  in  the  land  of  Israel,  and  over  the  whole 
creation.  It  assuredly  will.  "  There  remaineth  a 
rest  [6afi/3aridtios]  for  the  people  of  God."  (Heb. 
iv.  9.)  When  the  Son  of  Abraham,  Son  of  David, 
and  Son  of  Man,  shall  assume  His  position  of  gov- 
ernment over  the  whole  earth,  there  will  be  a  glori- 
ous Sabbath — a  rest  which  sin  shall  never  interrupt. 
But  now,  He  is  rejected,  and  all  who  know  and  love 
Him  are  called  to  take  their  place  with  Him  in  His 
rejection  ;  they  are  called  to  "go  forth  to  Him  with- 
out the  camp,  bearing  His  reproach."  (Heb.  xiii. 
13.)  If  earth  could  keep  a  Sabbath,  there  would  be 
no  reproach ;  but  the  very  fact  of  the  professing 
church's  seeking  to  make  the  first  day  of  the  week 
the  Sabbath,  reveals  a  deep  principle.  It  is  but  the 
effort  to  get  back  to  an  earthly  standing,  and  to  an 
earthly  code  of  morals. 

Many  may  not  see  this.  Many  true  Christians 
may,  most  conscientiously,  observe  the  Sabbath 
day,  as  such;  and  we  are  bound  to  honor  their 
consciences,  though  we  are  perfectly  warranted  in 
asking  them  to  furnish  a  scriptural  basis  for  their 
conscientious  convictions.  We  would  not  stumble 
or  wound  their  conscience,  but  we  would  seek  to 
instruct  it.  However,  we  are  not  now  occupied 


26  GENESIS. 

with  conscience  or  its  convictions,  but  only  with  the 
principle  which  lies  at  the  root  of  what  may  be 
termed  the  Sabbath  question ;  and  I  would  only  put 
the  question  to  the  Christian  reader,  which  is  more 
consonant  with  the  entire  scope  and  spirit  of  the 
New  Testament, — The  celebration  of  the  seventh 
day  or  Sabbath,  or  the  celebration  of  the  first  day 
of  the  week  or  the  Lord's  day.* 


*  This  subject  will,  if  the  Lord  permit,  come  before  us  again  in 
the  twentieth  chapter  of  Exodus;  but  I  would  here  observe,  that 
very  much  of  the  offence  and  misunderstanding  connected  with 
the  important  subject  of  the  Sabbath,  may  be  justly  traced  to  the 
inconsiderate  and  injudicious  conduct  of  some  who,  in  their  zeal 
for  what  they  termed  Christian  liberty,  in  reference  to  the  Sabbath, 
rather  lose  sight  of  the  claims  of  honest  consciences,  and  also  of 
the  place  which  the  Lord's  day  occupies  in  the  New  Testament. 
Some  have  been  known  to  enter  upon  their  weekly  avocations, 
simply  to  show  their  liberty,  and  thus  they  caused  much  needless 
offence.  Such  acting  could  never  have  been  suggested  by  the 
Spirit  of  Christ.  If  I  am  ever  so  clear  and  free  in  my  own  mind,  I 
should  respect  the  consciences  of  my  brethren;  and,  moreover,  I 
do  not  believe  that  those  who  so  carry  themselves,  really  under- 
stand the  true  and  precious  privileges  connected  with  the  Lord's 
day.  We  should  only  be  too  thankful  to  be  rid  of  all  secular  occu- 
pation and  distraction,  to  think  of  having  recourse  to  them  for  the 
purpose  of  showing  our  liberty.  The  good  providence  of  our  God 
has  so  arranged  for  His  people  throughout  the  British  Empire,  that 
they  can,  without  pecuniary  loss,  enjoy  the  rest  of  the  Lord's  day, 
inasmuch  as  all  are  obliged  to  abstain  from  business.  This  must 
be  regarded  by  every  well-regulated  mind,  as  a  mercy;  for,  if  it 
were  not  thus  ordered,  we  know  how  man's  covetous  heart  would, 
if  possible,  rob  the  Christian  of  the  sweet  privilege  of  attending 
the  assembly  on  the  Lord's  day.  And  who  can  tell  what  would  be 
the  deadening  effect  of  uninterrupted  engagement  with  this  world's 
traffic  ?  Those  Christians  who,  from  Monday  morning  to  Saturday 
night,  breathe  the  dense  atmosphere  of  the  mart,  the  market  and 
the  manufactory,  can  form  some  idea  of  it.^ 

It  cannot  be  regarded  as  a  good  sign  to  find  men  introducing 
measures  for  the  public  profanation  of  the  Lord's  day.  It  assur- 
edly marks  the  progress  of  infidelity  and  French  inlluence. 


CHAPTER    II.  27 

We  shall  now  consider  the  connection  between 
the  Sal >1  nitli  and  the  river  flowing  out  of  Eden. 
There  is  much  interest  in  this.  It  is  the  first  notice 
we  get  of  "the  river  of  God,"  which  is  here  intro- 
duced in  connection  with  God's  rest.  When  God , 
was  resting  in  His  works,  the  whole  world  felt  the 
blessing  and  refreshment  thereof.  It  was  impossible 
for  God  to  keep  a  Sabbath,  and  earth  not  to  feel  its 
sacred  influence.  But,  alas  !  the  streams  which 
flowed  forth  from  Eden — the  scene  of  earthly  rest — 
were  speedily  interrupted,  because  the  rest  of  crea- 
tion was  marred  by  sin. 

Yet,  blessed  be  God,  sin  did  not  put  a  stop  to 
His  activities,  but  only  gave  them  a  new  sphere ; 
and  wherever  He  is  seen  acting,  the  river  is  seen 
flowing.  Thus,  when  we  find  Him,  with  a  strong 
hand  and  an  outstretched  arm,  conducting  His  ran- 
somed hosts  across  the  sterile  sand  of  the  desert, 
there  we  see  the  stream  flowing  forth,  not  from 
Eden,  but  from  the  smitten  Rock — apt  and  beau- 
tiful expression  of  the  ground  on  which  sovereign 


But  there  are  some  who  teach  that  the  expression  77 
7jf.L  Epa,  which  is  rightly  enough  translated, "  the  Lord's  day,"  refers 
to  "the  day  of  the  Lord,"  and  that  the  exiled  apostle  found  him- 
self can-led  forward,  as  it  were,  into  the  spirit  of  the  day  of  the 
Lord.  1  do  not  believe  the  original  would  bear  such  an  interpre- 
tation; and,  besides,  we  have  in  1  Thess.  v.  2,  and  2  Peter  iii.  10, 
the  exact  woi-ds,  "the  day  of  the  Lord,"  the  original  of  which  is 
quite  different  from  the  expression  above  referred  to,  being,  not 
TJ  Kvpiccxrf  rj/.iEpa,  but  rj  rjjJif.pa  uvpiov.  This  entirely  settles 
the  matter,  so  far  as  the  mere  criticism  is  concerned ;  and  as  to 
interpretation,  it  is  plain  that  by  far  the  greater  portion  of  the 
Apocalypse  is  occupied,  not  with  "the  day  of  the  Lord,"  but  with 
events  prior  thereto. 


28  GENESIS. 


grace  ministers  to  the  need  of  sinners  !  This  was 
redemption  and  not  merely  creation.  "That  rock 
was  Christ,"  Christ  smitten  to  meet  His  people's 
need.  The  smitten  Rock  was  connected  with  Je- 
hovah's place  in  the  Tabernacle;  and  truly  there 
was  moral  beauty  in  the  connection.  God  dwelling 
in  curtains,  and  Israel  drinking  from  a  smitten  rock, 
had  a  voice  for  every  opened  ear,  and  a  deep  lesson 
for  every  circumcised  heart.  (Exod.  xviit  6.) 

Passing  onward,  in  the  history  of  God's  ways, 
we  find  the  river  flowing  in  another  channel.  "In 
the  last  day,  that  great  day  of  the  feast,  Jesus  stood 
and  cried,  saying,  'If  any  man  thirst,  let  him  come 
unto  Me  and  drink.  He  that  believeth  on  Me, 
as  the  Scripture  hath  said,  out  of  his  belly  shall 
flow  rivers  of  living  water.'"  (John  vii.  37,  38.) 
Here,  then,  we  find  the  river  emanating  from  an- 
other source,  and  flowing  through  another  channel ; 
though,  in  one  sense,  the  source  of  the  river  was 
ever  the  same,  being  God  Himself;  but  then  it  was 
God  known  in  a  new  relationship  and  upon  a  new 
principle.  Thus,  in  the  passage  just  quoted,  the 
Lord  Jesus  was  taking  His  place,  in  spirit,  outside 
of  the  whole  existing  order  of  things,  and  present- 
ing Himself  as  the  Source  of  the  river  of  living 
water,  of  which  river  the  person  of  the  believer  was 
to  be  the  channel.  Eden  of  old  was  constituted  a 
debtor  to  the  whole  earth  to  send  forth  the  fertilizing 
streams ;  and  in  the  desert,  the  rock,  when  smitten, 
became  a  debtor  to  Israel's  thirsty  hosts.  Just  so 
now,  every  one  who  believes  in  Jesus  is  a  debtor  to 


CHAPTER    II.  29 

the  scene  around  him  to  allow  the  streams  of  re- 
freshment to  flow  forth  from  him. 

The  Christian  should  regard  himself  as  the  chan- 
nel through  which  the  manifold  grace  of  Christ  may 
flow  out  to  a  needy  world  ;  and  the  more  freely  he 
communicates,  the  more  freely  will  he  receive,  "for 
there  is  that  scattereth,  and  yet  increaseth ;  and 
there  is  that  withholdeth  more  than  is  meet,  and  it 
tendeth  to  poverty."  This  places  the  believer  in  a 
place  of  sweetest  privilege,  and,  at  the  same  time, 
of  the  most  solemn  responsibility.  He  is  called  to 
be  the  constant  witness  and  exhibiter  of  the  grace 
of  Him  on  whom  He  believes. 

Now,  the  more  he  enters  into  the  privilege,  the 
more  will  he  answer  the  responsibility.  If  he  is 
habitually  feeding  upon  Christ,  he  cannot  avoid  ex- 
hibiting Him.  The  more  the  Holy  Spirit  keeps  the 
Christian's  eye  fixed  on  Jesus,  the  more  will  his 
heart  be  occupied  with  His  adorable  Person,  and  his 
life  and  character  bear  unequivocal  testimony  to  His 
grace.  Faith  is  at  once  the  power  of  ministry,  the 
power  of  testimony,  and  the  power  of  worship.  If 
we  are  not  living  uby  the  faith  of  the  Son  of  God, 
who  loved  us,  and  gave  Himself  for  us,"  we  shall 
neither  be  effectual  servants,  faithful  witnesses,  nor 
true  worshipers.  We  may  be  doing  a  great  deal, 
but  it  will  not  be  service  to  Christ:  we  may  be  say- 
ing a  great  deal,  but  it  will  not  be  testimony  for 
Christ :  we  may  exhibit  a  great  deal  of  piety  and 
devotion,  but  it  will  not  be  spiritual  and  true  wor- 
ship. 


30  GENESIS. 

Finally,  we  have  the  river  of  God  presented  to  us 
in  the  last  chapter  of  the  Apocalypse.*  "And  he 
showed  me  a  pure  river  of  water  of  life,  clear  as 
crystal,  proceeding  out  of  the  throne  of  God  and  of 
the  Lamb."  "There  is  a  river,  the  streams  whereof 
shall  make  glad  the  city  of  God,  the  holy  place  of 
the  tabernacles  of  the  Most  High."  This  is  the  last 
place  in  which  we  find  the  river.  Its  source  can 
never  again  be  touched,  its  channel  never  again  in- 
terrupted. "The  throne  of  God"  is  expressive  of 
eternal  stability,  and  the  presence  of  the  Lamb 
marks  it  as  based  upon  the  immediate  ground  of 
accomplished  redemption.  It  is  not  God's  throne 
in  creation,  nor  in  providence,  but  in  redemption. 
When  I  see  the  Lamb,  I  know  its  connection  with 
me  as  a  sinner.  "The  throne  of  God,"  as  such, 
would  but  deter  me  ;  but  when  God  reveals  Himself 
in  the  Person  of  the  Lamb,  the  heart  is  attracted, 
and  the  conscience  tranquilized. 

The  blood  of  the  Lamb  cleanses  the  conscience 
from  every  speck  and  stain  of  sin,  and  sets  it,  in 
perfect  freedom,  in  the  presence  of  a  holiness  which 
cannot  tolerate  sin.  In  the  cross,  all  the  claims  of 
divine  holiness  were  perfectly  answered  ;  so  that  the 
more  I  understand  the  latter,  the  more  I  appreciate 
the  former.  The  higher  our  estimate  of  holiness, 
the  higher  will  be  our  estimate  of  the  work  of  the 
cross.  "Grace  reigns,  through  righteousness,  unto 
eternal  life,  by  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord."  Hence  the 
Psalmist  calls  on  the  saints  to  give  thanks  at  the 
*  Compare,  also,  Ezekiel  xlvii.  1-12,  ami  Zcch.  xiv.  8. 


CHAPTER    II.  31 

remembrance  of  God's  holiness.  This  is  a  precious 
fruit  of  a  perfect  redemption.  Before  ever  a  sinner 
can  give  thanks  at  the  remembrance  of  God's  holi- 
ness, he  must  look  at  it  by  faith,  from  the  resurrec- 
tion side  of  the  cross. 

Having  thus  traced  the  river,  from  Genesis  to 
Revelation,  we  shall  briefly  look  at  Adam's  position 
in  Eden.  We  have  seen  him  as  a  type  of  Christ ; 
but  he  is  not  merely  to  be  viewed  typically,  but  per- 
sonally— not  merely  as  absolutely  shadowing  forth 
"the  second  Man,  the  Lord  from  heaven,"  but  also 
as  standing  in  the  place  of  personal  responsibility. 
In  flie  midst  of  the  fair  scene  of  creation,  the  Lord 
God  set  up  a  testimony,  and  this  testimony  was  also 
a  test  for  the  creature.  It  spoke  of  death  in  the 
midst  of  life.  "In  the  day  that  thou  eatest  thereof, 
thou  shalt  surely  die."  Strange,  solemn  sound  ! 
Yet  it  was  a  needed  sound.  Adam's  life  was  sus- 
pended upon  his  strict  obedience.  The  link  which 
connected  him  with  the  Lord  God*  was  obedience, 


*  My  reader  will  observe  the  change  in  the  second  chapter  from 
the  expression  "  God  "  to  "  Lord  God."  There  is  much  importance 
in  the  distinction.  When  God  is  seen  acting  in  relation  Avith  man, 
lie  takes  the  title  "Lord  God" — (Jehovah  Elohim) ;  but  until  man 
appears  on  the  scene,  the  word  "Lord"  is  not  used.  I  shall  just 
point  out  three  out  of  many  passages  in  which  the  distinction  is 
very  strikingly  presented.  "And  they  that  went  in,  went  in  male 
and  female  of  all  llesh,  as  God  (Elohim)  had  commanded  him;  and 
the  Lord  (Jehovah)  shut  him  in."  (Gen.  vii.  3(>.)  .Elohim  was  going 
to  destroy  the  world  winch  lie  had  made,  but  Jehovah  took  care  of 
the  man  with  whom  He  stood  in  relation.  Again,— "That  all  the 
earth  may  know  that  there  is  a  God  (Elohim)  in  Israel.  And  all 
this  assembly  shall  know  that  the  Lord  (Jehovah)  saveth,"  etc. 
(1  Sam.  xvii.  46,  47.)  All  the  earth  was  to  recognize  the  JMVM'IU'C  of 
Elohim;  but  Israel  was  called  to  recogui/e  the  actings  of  Jehovah, 


32  GENESIS. 

based  on  implicit  confidence  in  the  One  who  had  set 
him  in  his  position  of  dignity — confidence  in  His 
truth — confidence  in  His  love.  He  could  obey  only 
while  he  confided.  We  shall  see  the  truth  and  force 
of  this  more  fully  when  we  come  to  examine  the 
next  chapter. 

I  would  here  suggest  to  my  reader  the  remarkable 
contrast  between  the  testimony  set  up  in  Eden  and 
that  which  is  set  up  now.  Then,  when  all  around 
was  life,  God  spoke  of  death;  now,  on  the  contrary, 
when  all  around  is  death,  God  speaks  of  life:  then, 
the  word  was,  "in  the  da}^  thou  eatest  thou  shalt 
die" ;  now,  the  word  is,  "believe  and  live."  And, 
as  in  Eden  the  enemy  sought  to  make  void  God's 
testimony  as  to  the  result  of  eating  the  fruit,  so  now 
he  seeks  to  make  void  God's  testimony  as  to  the 
result  of  believing  the  gospel.  God  had  said,  "In 
the  day  that  thou  eatest  thereof  thou  shalt  surely 
die";  but  the  serpent?  said,  "Ye  shall  not  surely 
die."  And  now,  when  God's  Word  plainly  declares 
that  "he  that  believe th  on  the  Son  hath  everlasting 
life"  (John  iii.  36.),  the  same  serpent  seeks  to  per- 
suade people  that  they  have  not  everlasting  life,  nor 
should  they  presume  to  think  of  such  a  thing  until 
they  have  first  done,  felt  and  experienced  all  manner 
of  things. 

My  beloved  reader,  if  you  have  not  yet  heartily 

with  whom  they  gtood  in  relation.  Lastly,— "Jehoshaphat  cried 
out,  and  the  Lord  (Jehovah)  helped  him;  and  God  (Elohim)  moved 
them  to  depart  from  him."  (2  Chron.  xviil.  31.)  Jehovah  took  care 
of  His  poor  erring  servant;  but  Elohim,  though  unknown,  acted 
upon  the  hearts  of  the  uncircumcised  Syrians. 


CHAPTER    III.  33 

believed  the  divine  record,  let  me  beseech  you  to 
allow  "the  voice  of  the  Lord"  to  prevail  above  the 
hiss  of  the  serpent.  "He  that  heareth  My  word, 
and  believeth  on  Him  that  sent  Me,  hath  everlasting 
life,  and  shall  not  come  into  condemnation ;  but  is 
passed  from  death  unto  life."  (John  v.  24.) 


CHAPTER  III. 

THIS  section  of  our  book  sets  before  us  the  break- 
ing up  of  the  whole  scene  on  which  we  have 
been  dwelling.  It  abounds  in  very  weighty  princi- 
ples, and  has  very  justly  been,  in  all  ages,  resorted 
to  as  a  most  fruitful  theme  for  those  who  desired  to 
set  forth  the  .truth  as  to  man's  ruin  and  God's 
remedy.  The  serpent  enters  with  a  bold  question 
as  to  divine  revelation — terrible  model  and  fore- 
runner of  all  infidel  questions  since  raised  by  those 
who  have,  alas !  too  faithfully  served  the  serpent's 
cause  in  the  world — questions  which  are  only  to  be 
met  by  the  supreme  authority  and  divine  majesty  of 
Holy  Scripture. 

"Yea,  hath  God  said,  ye  shall  not  eat  of  every 
tree  of  the  garden  ?"  This  was  Satan's  crafty  in- 
quiry ;  and  had  the  Word  of  God  been  dwelling 
richly  in  Eve's  heart,  her  answer  might  have  been 
direct,  simple  and  conclusive.  The  true  way  in 

* 

which  to  meet  Satan's  questions  and  suggestions,  is 


34  GENESIS. 

to  treat  them  as  his,  and  repel  them  by  the  Word. 
To  let  them  near  the  heart  for  a  moment  is  to  lose 
the  only  power  by  which  to  answer  them.  The  devil 
did  not  openly  present  himself  and  say,  I  am  the 
devil,  the  enemy  of  God,  and  I  am  come  to  traduce 
Him  and  ruin  you.  This  would  not  be  serpent-like  ; 
and  yet  he  really  did  all  this  by  raising  questions  in 
the  mind  of  the  creature.  To  admit  the  question, 
"Hath  God  said?"  when  I  know  that  God  has 
spoken,  is  positive  infidelity ;  and  the  very  fact  of 
my  admitting  it,  proves  my  total  incapacity  to  meet 
it.  Hence,  in  Eve's  case,  the  form  of  her  reply 
evidenced  the  fact  that  she  had  admitted  to  her 
heart  the  serpent's  crafty  inquiry.  Instead  of  ad- 
hering strictly  to  the  exact  words  of  God,  she,  in 
her  reply,  actually  adds  thereto. 

Now,  either  to  add  to  or  take  from  God's  Word, 
proves  ve^  clearly  that  His  Word  is  not  dwelling  in 
my  heart  or  governing  my  conscience.  If  a  man  is 
finding  his  enjoyment  in  obedience,  if  it  is  his  meat 
and  his  drink,  if  he  is  living  by  every  word  that 
proceedeth  out  of  the  mouth  of  Jehovah,  he  will 
assuredly  be  acquainted  with,  and  fully  alive  to,  His 
Word.  He  could  not  be  indifferent  to  it.  The 
Lord  Jesus,  in  His  conflict  with  Satan,  accurately 
applied  the  Word,  because  He  lived  upon  it,  and 
esteemed  it  more  than  His  necessary  food.  He 
could  not  misquote  or  misapply  the  Word,  neither 
could  He  be  indifferent  about  it.  Not  so  Eve.  She 
added  to  what  God  had  said.  His  command  was 
simple  enough, — "Thou  shalt  not  eat  of  it."  To 


CHAPTKIt    III.  35 

this  Eve  adds  her  own  words, — ''neither  shall  ye 
touch  it."  These  were  Eve's  words  and  not  God's. 
He  had  said  nothing  about  touching ;  so  that  whether 
her  misquotation  proceeded  from  ignorance,  or  in- 
difference, or  a  desire  to  represent  God  in  an  arbi- 
trary light,  or  from  all  three  together,  it  is  plain 
that  she  was  entirely  off  the  true  ground  of  simple 
confidence  in,  and  subjection  to,  God's  holy  Word. 
4 '  By  the  words  of  Thy  mouth,  I  have  kept  me  from 
the  paths  of  the  destroyer." 

Nothing  can  possess  more  commanding  interest 
than  the  way  in  which  the  Word  is  everywhere  put 
forward  throughout  the  sacred  canon,  together  with 
the  immense  importance  of  strict  obedience  thereto* 
Obedience  is  due  from  us  to  God's  Word,  simply 
because  it  is  His  Word.  To  raise  a  question,  when 
He  has  spoken,  is  blasphemy.  We  are  in  the  place 
of  a  creature.  He  is  the  Creator ;  He  may,  there- 
fore, justly  claim  obedience  from  us.  The  infidel 
may  call  this  "blind  obedience,"  but  the  Christian 
calls  this  intelligent  obedience,  inasmuch  as  it  is 
based  upon  the  knowledge  that  it  is  God's  Word  to 
which  he  is  obedient.  If  a  man  had  not  God's 
Word,  he  might  well  be  said  to  be  in  blindness  and 
darkness,  for  there  is  not  so  much  as  a  single  ra}r  of 
divine  light  within  or  around  us  but  what  emanates 
from  God's  pure  and  eternal  Word.  All  that  we 
want  to  know  is  that  God  has  spoken,  and  then  obe- 
dience becomes  the  very  highest  order  of  intelligent 
acting.  When  .the  soul  gets  up  to  God,  it  has 
reached  the  very  highest  source  of  authority.  No 


36  GENESIS. 

man,  nor  body  of  men,  can  claim  obedience  to  their 
word,  because  it  is  theirs ;  and  hence  the  claims  of 
the  Church  of  Rome  are  arrogant  and  impious.  In 
her  claiming  obedience,  she  usurps  the  prerogative 
of  God ;  and  all  who  yield  it,  rob  God  of  His  right. 
She  presumes  to  place  herself  between  God  and  the 
conscience ;  and  who  can  do  this  with  impunity  ? 
When  God  speaks,  man  is  bound  to  obey.  Happy 
is  he  if  he  does  so:  woe  be  to  him  if  he  does 
not.  Infidelity  may  question  if  God  has  spoken ; 
superstition  may  place  human  authority  between 
my  conscience  and  what  God  has  spoken ;  by  both 
alike  I  am  effectually  robbed  of  the  Word,  and, 
as  a  consequence,  of  the  deep  blessedness  of  obe- 
dience. 

There  is  blessing  in  every  act  of  obedience ;  but 
the  moment  the  soul  hesitates,  the  enemy  has  the 
advantage,  and  he  will  assuredly  use  it  to  thrust  the 
soul  further  and  further  from  God.  Thus,  in  the 
chapter  before  us,  the  question,  "Hath  God  said  ?" 
was  followed  b}r,  "Ye  shall  not  surely  die."  That 
is  to  sa}r,  there  was  first  the  question  raised  as  to 
whether  God  had  spoken,  and  then  followed  the  open 
contradiction  of  what  God  had  said.  This  solemn 
fact  is  abundantly  sufficient  to  show  how  dangerous 
it  is  to  admit  near  the  heart  a  question  as  to  divine 
revelation  in  its  fullness  and  integrity.  A  refined 
rationalism  is  very  near  akin  to  bold  infidelity,  and 
the  infidelity  that  dares  to  judge  God's  Word  is  not 
far  from  the  atheism  that  denies  His  existence.  Eve 
would  never  have  stood  by  to  hear  God  contradicted 

. 


CHAPTER    III.  37 

if  she  had  not  previously  fallen  into  looseness  and 
indifference  as  to  His  Word.  She,  too,  had  her 
"Phases  of  Faith,"  or,  to  speak  more  correctly, 
her  phases  of  infidelity:  she  suffered  God  to  be 
contradicted  by  a  creature,  simply  because  His 
Word  had  lost  its  proper  authority  over  her  heart, 
her  conscience  and  her  understanding. 

This  furnishes  a  most  solemn  warning  to  all  who 
are  in  danger  of  being  ensnared  by  an  unhallowed 
rationalism.  There  is  no  true  security  save  in  a 
profound  faith  in  the  plenary  inspiration  and  su- 
preme authority  of  "ALL  SCRIPTURE."  The  soul 
that  is  endowed  with  this  has  a  triumphant  answer 
to  eveiy  objector,  whether  he  issue  from  Rome  or 
Germany.  "There  is  nothing  new  under  the  sun." 
The  self-same  evil  which  is  now  corrupting  the  very 
springs  of  religious  thought  and  feeling  throughout 
the  fairest  portion  of  the  continent  of  Europe,  was 
that  which  laid  Eve's  heart  in  ruin's  in  the  garden 
of  Eden.  The  first  step  in  her  downward  course 
was  her  hearkening  to  the  question,  "Hath  God 
said";  and  then  onward  she  went,  from  stage  to 
stage,  until  at  length  she  bowed  before  the  serpent, 
and  owned  him  as  her  god  and  the  fountain  of  truth. 
Yes,  my  reader,  the  serpent  displaced  God,  and  the 
serpent's  lie  God's  truth.  Thus  it  was  with  fallen, 
man,  and  thus  it  is  with  fallen  man's  posterity. 
God's  Word  has  no  place  in  the  heart  of  the  un- 
regenerated  man,  but  the  lie  of  the  serpent  has. 
Let  the  formation  of  man's  heart  be  examined,  and 
it  will  be  found  that  there  is  a  place  therein  for 


38  GENESIS. 

Satan's  lie,  but  none  whatever  for  the  truth  of  God. 
Hence  the  force,  of  the  word  to  Nicodemus — "Ye 
must  be  born  again." 

But  it  is  important  to  observe  the  mode  in  which 
the  serpent  sought  to  shake  Eve's  confidence  in 
God's  truth,  and  thus  bring  her  under  the  power  of 
infidel  "reason."  It  was  by  shaking  her  confidence 
in  God's  love.  He  sought  to  shake  her  confidence 
in  what  God  had  said  by  showing  that  the  testimony 
was  not  founded  in  love.  "For,"  said  he,  "God 
doth  know  that  in  the  day  ye  eat  thereof,  then  your 
eyes  shall  be  opened,  and  ye  shall  be  as  gods,  know- 
ing good  and  evil."  (Ver.  5.)  In  other  words, 
There  is  positive  advantage  connected  with  the  eat- 
ing of  that  fruit  of  which  God  is  seeking  to  deprive 
you ;  why,  therefore,  should  you  believe  God's  tes- 
timony ?  You  cannot  place  confidence  in  one  who 
manifestly  does  not  love  you ;  for  if  He  loved  you, 
why  should  He  prohibit  your  enjoying  a  positive 
privilege  ? 

Eve's  security  against  the  influence  of  all  this 
reasoning  would  have  been  simple  repose  in  the  in- 
finite goodness  of  God.  She  should  have  said  to 
the  serpent,  I  have  the  fullest  confidence  in  God's 
goodness,  and  therefore  I  deem  it  impossible  that 
He  could  withhold  any  real  good  from  me.  If  that 
fruit  were  good  for  me,  I  should  surely  have  it ;  but 
the  fact  of  its  being  forbidden  by  God  proves  that  I 
would  be  no  better,  but  much  worse  off  by  the  cat- 
ing  of  it.  I  am  convinced  of  God's  love,  and  I  am 
convinced  of  God's  truth,  and  I  believe,  too,  that 


CHAPTER    III.  39 

you  arc  an  evil  one  come  to  draw  my  heart  away 
from  the  fountain  of  goodness  and  truth.  Get  thee 
behind  me,  Satan.  This  would  have  been  a  noble 
reply ;  but  it  was  not  given.  Her  confidence  in 
truth  and  love  gave  way,  and  all  was  lost ;  and  so 
we  find  that  there  is  just  as  little  place  in  the  heart 
of  fallen  man  for  God's  love  as  there  is  for  God's 
truth.  The  heart  of  man  is  a  stranger  to  both  the 
one  and  the  other  until  renewed  by  the  power  of  the 
Holy  Ghost. 

Now,  it  is  deeply  interesting  to  turn  from  Satan's 
lie  in  reference  to  the  truth  and  love  of  God,  to  the 
mission  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who  came  from 
the  bosom  of  the  Father  in  order  to  reveal  what  He 
really  is.  "Grace  and  truth" — the  very  things 
which  man  lost  in  his  fall — "came  by  Jesus  Christ." 
(John  i.  17.)  He  was  "the  faithful  witness"  of 
what  God  was.  (Rev.  i.  5.)  Truth  reveals  God  as 
He  is,  but  this  truth  is  connected  with  the  revelation 
of  perfect  grace ;  and  thus  the  sinner  finds,  to  his 
unspeakable  joy,  that  the  revelation  of  what  God  is, 
instead  of  being  his  destruction,  becomes  the  basis 
of  his  eternal  salvation.  "This  is  life  eternal,  that 
they  might  know  Thee,  the  only  true  God,  and  Jesus 
Christ  whom  Thou  hast  sent."  (John  xvii.  3.)  I 
cannot  know  God  and  not  have  life.  The  loss  of 
the  knowledge  of  God  was  death ;  but  the  knowl- 
edge of  God  is  life.  This  necessarily  makes  life  a 
thing  entirely  outside  of  ourselves,  and  dependent 
upon  what  God  is.  Let  me  arrive  at  what  amount 
of  self-knowledge  I  may,  it  is  not  said  that  this  is 
4 


40  GENESIS. 

life  eternal,  to  know  themselves ;  though,  no  doubt, 
the  knowledge  of  God  and  the  knowledge  of  self 
will  go  very  much  together;  still,  " eternal  life "  is 
connected  with  the  former,  and  not  with  the  latter. 
To  know  God  as  He  is,  is  life ;  and  "all  who  know 
not  God"  shall  be  "punished  with  everlasting  de- 
struction from  His  presence." 

It  is  of  the  utmost  importance  to  see  that  what 
really  stamps  man's  character  and  condition  is  his 
ignorance  or  knowledge  of  God.  This  it  is  that 
marks  his  character  here,  and  fixes  his  destiny  here- 
after. Is  he  evil  in  his  thoughts,  evil  in  his  words, 
evil  in  his  actions, — it  is  all  the  result  of  his  being 
ignorant  of  God.  On  the  other  hand,  is  he  pure  in 
thought,  holy  in  conversation,  gracious  in  action, — 
it  is  but  the  practical  result  of  his  knowledge  of 
God.  So  also  as  to  the  future.  To  know  God,  is 
the  solid  ground  of  endless  bliss — everlasting  glory : 
to  know  Him  not,  is  "everlasting  destruction." 
Thus  the  knowledge  of  God  is  everything.  It 
quickens  the  soul,  purifies  the  heart,  tranquilizes 
the  conscience,  elevates  the  aifections,  sanctifies  the 
entire  character  and  conduct. 

Need  we  wonder,  therefore,  that  Satan's  grand 
design  was  to  rob  the  creature  of  the  true  knowl- 
edge of  the  only  true  God  ?  He  misrepresented  the 
blessed  God :  he  said  He  was  not  kind.  This  was 
the  secret  spring  of  all  the  mischief.  It  matters  not 
what  shape  sin  has  since  taken — it  matters  not 
through  what  channel  it  has  flowed,  under  what 
head  it  has  ranged  itself,  or  in  what  garb  it  has 


CHAPTER    III.  41 

clothed  itself ;  it  is  all  to  be  traced  to  this  one  thing, 
namely,  ignorance  of  God.  The  most  refined  and 
cultivated  moralist,  the  most  devout  religionist,  the 
most  benevolent  philanthropist,  if  ignorant  of  God, 
is  as  far  from  life  and  true  holiness  as  the  publican 
and  the  harlot.  The  prodigal  was  just  as  much  a 
sinner,  and  as  positively  away  from  the  Father, 
when  he  had  crossed  the  threshold  as  when  he  was 
feeding  swine  in  the  far  country  (Luke  xv.  13-15.). 
So,  in  Eve's  case,  the  moment  she  took  herself  out 
of  the  hands  of  God — out  of  the  position  of  abso- 
lute dependence  upon,  and  subjection  to,  His  Word, 
she  abandoned  herself  to  the  government  of  sense, 
as  used  of  Satan  for  her  entire  overthrow. 

The  sixth  verse  presents  three  things ;  namely, 
"the  lust  of  the  flesh,  the  lust  of  the  eye,  and  the 
pride  of  life";  which  three,  as  the  apostle  states, 
comprehend  "all  that  is  in  the  world."  These 
things  necessarily  took  the  lead  when  God  was  shut 
out.  If  I  do  not  abide  in  the  happy  assurance  of 
God's  love  and  truth — His  grace  and  faithfulness,  I 
shall  surrender  myself  to  the  government  of  some 
one  or,  it  may  be,  all  of  the  above  principles ;  and 
this  is  only  another  name  for  the  government  of 
Satan.  There  is,  strictly  speaking,  no  such  thing 
as  man's  free-will.  If  man  be  self-governed,  he  is 
really  governed  by  Satan ;  and  if  not,  he  is  gov- 
erned by  God. 

Now,  the  three  great  agencies  by  which  Satan 
works  are  "the  lust  of  the  flesh,  the  lust  of  the  eye, 
and  the  pride  of  life."  These  were  the  things  pre- 


42  GENESIS. 

sented  by  Satan  to  the  Lord  Jesus  in  the  temptation. 
He  began  by  tempting  the  Second  Man  to  take  Him- 
self out  of  the  position  of  absolute  dependence  upon 
God.  "Command  these  stones  that  they  be  made 
bread."  He  asked  Him  to  do  this,  not,  as  in  the 
case  of  the  first  man,  to  make  Himself  what  He  was 
not,  but  to  prove  what  He  was.  Then  followed  the 
offer  of  the  kingdoms  of  the  world,  with  all  their 
glory.  And,  finally,  conducting  Him  to  a  pinnacle 
of  the  temple,  he  tempted  Him  to  give  Himself, 
suddenly  and  miraculously,  to  the  admiration  of  the 
assembled  people  below.  (Comp.  Matt.  iv.  1-11  with 
Luke  iv.  1-13.)  The  plain  design  of  each  tempta- 
tion was  to  induce  the  blessed  One  to  step  from  the 
position  of  entire  dependence  upon  God,  and  perfect 
subjection  to  His  will ;  but  all  in  vain.  "It  is  writ- 
ten" was  the  unvarying  reply  of  the  only  dependent, 
self-emptied,  perfect  man.  Others  might  undertake 
to  manage  for  themselves ;  none  but  God  should 
manage  for  Him. 

What  an  example  for  the  faithful,  under  all  their 
circumstances  !  Jesus  kept  close  to  Scripture,  and 
thus  conquered ;  without  any  other  weapon,  save 
the  Sword  of  the  Spirit,  He  stood  in  the  conflict, 
and  gained  a  glorious  triumph.  What  a  contrast 
with  the  first  Adam  !  The  One  had  everything  to 
plead  for  God,  the  other  had  everything  to  plead 
against  Him.  The  garden,  with  all  its  delights,  in 
the  one  case ;  the  wilderness,  with  all  its  privations, 
in  the  other:  confidence  in  Satan,  in  the  one  case; 
confidence  in  God  in  the  other :  complete  defeat  in 


CIIAPTEIl    III.  43 

the  one  case  ;  complete  victory  in  the  other.  Blessed 
forever  be  the  God  of  all  grace,  who  has  laid  our 
help  on  One  so  mighty  to  conquer — mighty  to  save! 
Let  us  now  inquire  how  far  Adam  and  Eve  realized 
the  serpent's  promised  advantage.  This  inquiry  will 
lead  us  to  a  deeply  important  point  in  'connection 
with  the  fall  of  man.  The  Lord  God  had  so  ordered 
it,  that  in  and  by  the  fall,  man  should  get  what  pre- 
viously he  had  not,  and  that  was,  a  conscience,  a 
knowledge  of  both  good  and  evil.  This,  man  evi- 
dently could  not  have  had  before.  He  could  not 
have  known  aught  about  evil,  inasmuch  as  evil  was 
was  not  there  to  be  known.  He  was  in  a  state  of 
innocence,  which  is  a  state  of  ignorance  of  evil. 
Man  got  a  conscience  in  and  by  the  fall,  and  we 
find  that  the  very  first  effect  of  conscience  was  to 
make  him  a  coward.  Satan  had  utterly  deceived  the 
woman.  He  had  said,  "your  ej^es  shall  be  opened, 
and  ye  shall  be  as  gods,  knowing  good  and  evil"  ; 
but  he  had  left  out  a  material  part  of  the  truth, 
namely,  that  they  should  know  good  without  the 
power  to  do  it,  and  that  the}^  should  know  evil  with- 
out the  power  to  avoid  it.  Their  very  attempt  to 
elevate  themselves  in  the  scale  of  moral  existence 
involved  the  loss  of  true  elevation.  They  became 
degraded,  powerless,  Satan-enslaved,  conscience- 
smitten,  terrified  creatures.  "The  eyes  of  them 
both  were  opened,"  no  doubt;  but,  alas  !  to  what  a 
sight ! — it  was  only  to  discover  their  own  naked- 
ness. They  opened  their  eyes  upon  their  own  con- 
dition, which  was  "wretched  and  miserable  and 


44  GENESIS. 


poor  and  blind  and  naked."  "They  knew  that  they 
were  naked" — sad  fruit  of  the  tree  of  knowledge  ! 
It  was  not  any  fresh  knowledge  of  divine  excellency 
they  had  attained — no  fresh  beams  of  divine  light 
from  the  pure  and  eternal  fountain  thereof — alas  ! 
no ;  the  very  earliest  result  of  their  disobedient 
effort  after  knowledge,  was  the  discovery  that  they 
were  naked. 

Now,  it  is  well  to  understand  this ;  well,  too,  to 
know  how  conscience  works, — to  see  that  it  can  only 
make  cowards  of  us,  as  being  the  consciousness  of 
what  we  are.  Many  are  astray  as  to  this ;  they 
think  that  conscience  will  bring  us  to  God.  Did  it 
operate  thus  in  the  case  of  Adam  and  Eve  ?  As- 
suredly not.  Nor  will  it  in  the  case  of  any  sinner. 
How  could  it  ?  How  could  the  sense  of  what  I  am 
ever  bring  me  to  God,  if  not  accompanied  by  the 
faith  of  what  God  is  ?  Impossible.  It  will  produce 
shame,  self-reproach,  remorse,  anguish.  It  may 
also  give  birth  to  certain  efforts  on  my  part  to 
remedy  the  condition  which  it  discloses  ;  but  these 
very  efforts,  so  far  from  drawing  us  to  God,  rather  act 
as  a  blind  to  hide  Him  from  our  view.  Thus,  in  the 
case  of  Adam  and  Eve,  the  discQvery  of  their  naked- 
ness was  followed  by  an  effort  of  their  own  to  cover 
it, — "they  sewed  fig-leaves  together  and  made  them- 
selves aprons."  This  is  the  first  record  wre  have  of 
man's  attempt  to  remedy,  by  his  own  device,  his 
condition,  and  the  attentive  consideration  thereof 
will  afford  us  not  a  little  instruction  as  to  the  real 
character  of  human  religiousness  in  all  ages.  In  the 


CHAPTER    III.  45 

first  place,  we  see,  not  only  in  Adam's  case,  but  in 
every  case,  that  man's  effort  to  remedy  his  condition 
is  based  upon  the  sense  of  his  nakedness.  He  is 
confessedly  naked,  and  all  his  works  are  the  result 
of  his  being  so.  This  can  never  avail.  I  must 
know  that  I  am  clothed,  before  I  can  do  anything 
acceptable  in  the  sight  of  God. 

And  this,  be  it  observed,  is  the  difference  between 
true  Christianity  and  human  religiousness.  The 
former  is  founded  upon  the  fact  of  a  man's  being 
clothed  ;  the  latter,  upon  the  fact  of  his  being  naked. 
The  former  has  for  its  starting-post  what  the  latter 
has  for  its  goal.  All  that  a  true  Christian  does,  is 
because  he  is  clothed — perfectly  clothed;  all  that  a 
mere  religionist  does,  is  in  order  that  he  may  be 
clothed.  This  makes  a  vast  difference.  The  more 
we  examine  the  genius  of  man's  religion,  in  all  its 
phases,  the  more  we  shall  see  its  thorough  insuffici- 
ency to  remed}^  his  state,  or  even  to  meet  his  own 
sense  thereof.  It  may  do  very  well  for  a  time,  it 
may  avail  so  long  as  death,  judgment  and  the  wrath 
of  God  are  looked  at  from  a  distance,  if  looked  at 
at  all ;  but  when  a  man  comes  to  look  these  terrible 
realities  straight  in  the  face,  he  will  find,  in  good 
truth,  that  his  religion  is  a  bed  too  short  for  him  to 
stretch  himself  upon,  and  a  covering  too  narrow  for 
him  to  wrap  himself  in. 

The  moment  Adam  heard  the  voice  of  the  Lord 
God,  in  Eden,  "7*e  was  afraid,"  because,  as  he  him- 
self confessed,  "I  was  naked."  Yes,  naked,  al- 
though he  had  his  apron  on  him.  But  it  is  plain 


46  GENESIS. 

that  that  covering  did  not  even  satisfy  his  own  con- 
science. Had  his  conscience  been  divinely  satisfied, 
he  would  not  have  been  afraid.  "If  our  heart  con- 
demn us  not,  then  have  we  confidence  toward  God." 
(1  John  iii.  20,  21.)  But  if  even  the  human  con- 
science cannot  find  repose  in  man's  religious  efforts, 
how  much  less  can  the  holiness  of  God.  Adam's 
apron  could  not  screen  him  from  the  eye  of  God,  and 
he  could  not  stand  in  His  presence  naked  ;  therefore 
he  fled  to  hide  himself.  This  is  what  conscience  will 
do  at  all  times.  It  will  cause  man  to  hide  himself 
from  God ;  and,  moreover,  all  that  his  own  relig- 
iousness offers  him  is  a  hiding-place  from  God. 
This  is  a  miserable  provision,  inasmuch  as  he  must 
meet  God  some  time  or  other,  and  if  he  has  naught 
save  the  sad  conscience  of  what  he  is,  he  must  be 
afraid — yea,  he  must  be  wretched.  Indeed,  nothing 
is  needed,  save  hell  itself,  to  complete  the  mise^  of 
one  who  feels  he  has  to  meet  God,  and  knows  only 
his  own  unfitness  to  meet  Him. 

Had  Adam  known  God's  perfect  love,  he  would 
not  have  been  afraid.  "There  is  no  fear  in  love; 
but  perfect  love  casteth  out  fear,  because  fear  hath 
torment.  He  that  feareth  is  not  made  perfect  in 
love."  (1  John  iv.  17,  18.)  But  Adam  knew  not 
this,  because  he  had  believed  the  serpent's  lie.  He 
thought  that  God  was  anything  but  love,  and  there- 
fore the  very  last  thought  of  his  heart  would  have 
been  to  venture  into  His  presence.  He  could  not  do 
it.  Sin  was  there,  and  God  and  sin  can  never  meet. 
So  long  as  there  is  sin  on  the  conscience,  there  must 


CHAPTER    III.  47 

be  the  sense  of  distance  from  God.  "He  is  of  purer 
eyes  than  to  behold  evil,  and  cannot  look  upon  ini- 
quity." (Hab.  i.  13.)  Holiness  and  sin  cannot 
dwell  together.  Sin,  wherever  it  is  found,  can  only 
be  met  by  the  wrath  of  God. 

But,  blessed  be  God,  there  is  something  beside 
the  conscience  of  what  I  am.  There  is  the  revelation 
of  what  He  is;  and  this  latter  the  fall  of  man  really 
brought  out.  God  had  not  revealed  Himself  fully 
in  creation:  He  had  shown  uHis  eternal  power  and 
Godhead  [Oczon;?],*"  but  He  had  not  told  out  all 
the  deep  secrets  of  His  nature  and  character. 
Wherefore  Satan  made  a  grand  mistake  in  coming 
to  meddle  with  God's  creation.  He  only  proved  to 
be  the  instrument  of  his  own  eternal  defeat  and 
confusion,  and  uhis  violent  dealing"  shall  forever 
4 'come  down  upon  his  own  pate."  His  lie  only  gave 
occasion  for  the  display  of  the  full  truth  in  reference 
to  God.  Creation  never  could  have  brought  out 
what  God  was.  There  was  infinitely  more  in  Him 
than  power  and  wisdom:  there  was  love,  mercy, 
holiness,  righteousness,  goodness,  tenderness,  long- 
suffering.  Where  could  these  be  displayed  but  in  a 
world  of  sinners  ?  God,  at  the  first,  came  clown  to 
create;  and  then,  when  the  serpent  presurued  to 


*  There  is  a  profoundly  interesting  thought  suggested  by  com- 
paring the  word  OSIOTJ^  (Rom.  i.  20.)  Avith  the  word  O£OT??$  (Col. 
ii.  9.)  They  aro*both  rendered  "  Godhead,"  but  they  present  a  very 
different  thought.  The  heathen  might  have  seen  that  there  was 
something  superhuman — something  divine — in  creation  ;  but  pure, 
essential,  incomprehensible  Deity  dwelt  in  the  adorable  Person  of 
the  Son. 


48  GENESIS. 

meddle  with  creation,  God  came  down  to  save. 
This  is  brought  out  in  the  first  words  uttered  by  the 
Lord  God  after  man's  fall.  "And  the  Lord  God 
called  unto  Adam,  and  said  unto  him,  'Where  art 
thou?''  This  question  proved  two  things, — it 
proved  that  man  was  lost,  and  that  God  had  come 
to  seek, — it  proved  man's  sin  and  God's  grace. 
"Where  art  thou  ?  "  Amazing  faithfulness  !  Amaz- 
ing grace  !  Faithfulness,  to  disclose,  in  the  very 
question  itself,  the  truth  as  to  man's  condition: 
grace,  to  bring  out,  in  the  very  fact  of  God's  asking 
such  a  question,  the  truth  as  to  His  character  and 
attitude  in  reference  to  fallen  man.  Man  was  lost ; 
but  God  had  come  down  to  look  for  him — to  bring 
him  out  of  his  hiding-place  behind  the  trees  of  the 
garden,  in  order  that,  in  the  happy  confidence  of 
faith,  he  might  find  a  hiding-place  in  Himself.  This 
was  grace.  To  create  man  out  of  the  dust  of  the 
ground  was  power;  but  to  seek  man  in  his  lost 
estate  was  grace.  But  who  can  utter  all  that  is 
wrapped  up  in  the  idea  of  God's  being  a  seeker  ? 
God  seeking  a  sinner  !  What  could  the  blessed  One 
have  seen  in  man  to  lead  Him  to  seek  for  him  ? 
Just  what  the  shepherd  saw  in  the  lost  sheep,  or 
what  the  woman  saw  in  the  lost  piece  of  silver,  or 
what  the  father  saw  in  the  lost  son.  The  sinner  is 
valuable  to  God  ;  but  why  he  should  be  so,  eternity 
alone  will  unfold. 

How,  then,  did  the  sinner  reply  to  the  faithful  and 
gracious  inquiry  of  the  blessed  God  ?  Alas  !  the 
reply  only  reveals  the  awful  depth  of  evil  into  which 


CHAPTER    III.  49 

he  had  fallen.  "And  he  said,  'I  heard  Thy  voice 
in  the  garden  and  I  was  afraid,  because  I  was 
naked  ;  and  I  hid  myself.'  And  He  said,  'Who  told 
thee  that  thou  wast  naked  ?  Hast  thou  eaten  of  the 
tree  whereof  I  commanded  thee  that  thou  shouldest 
not  eat  ? '  And  the  man  said,  '  The  woman  whom 
Thou  gavest  to  be  with  me,  she  gave  me  of  the  tree, 
and  I  did  eat. '  '  Here  we  find  him  actually  laying 
the  blame  of  his  shameful  fall  on  the  circumstances 
in  which  God  had  placed  him,  and  thus,  indirectly, 
upon  God  Himself.  This  has  ever  been  the  way 
with  fallen  man, — every  one  and  everything  is 
blamed  but  self.  In  the  case  of  true  conviction, 
the  very  reverse  is  exhibited.  "Is  it  not  I  that 
have  sinned?"  is  the  inquiry  of  a  truly  humbled 
soul.  Had  Adam  known  himself,  how  different 
would  have  been  his  style  !  But  he  neither  knew 
himself  nor  God,  and,  therefore,  instead  of  throw- 
ing the  blame  entirely  upon  himself,  he  threw  it 
upon  God. 

Here,  then,  was- man's  terrible  position.  He  had 
lost  all.  His  dominion,  his  dignity,  his  hap'piness, 
his  innocence,  his  purity,  his  peace — all  was  gone 
from  him ;  and,  what  was  still  worse,  he  accused 
God  of  being  the  cause  of  it.*  There  he  stood,  a 

*Man  not  only  accuses  God  of  being  the  author  of  his  fall,  but 
also  blames  Him  for  his  non -recovery.  How  often  do  we  hear 
persons  say  that  they  cannot  believe  unless  God  gives  them  the 
power  to  believe;  and,  further,  that  unless  they  are  the  subjects  of 
God's  eternal  decree,  they  cannot  be  saved. 

Now,  it  is  perfectly  true  that  no  man  can  believe  the  gospel  ex- 
cept by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  it  is  also  true  that  all 
who  so  believe  the  gospel  are  the  happy  subjects  of  God's  eternal 


50  GENESIS. 

lost,  ruined,  guilt}*",   and   yet   self -vindicating ,   and 
therefore  God-accusing  sinner. 

But,  just  at  this  point,  God  began  to  reveal  Him- 
self and  His  purposes  of  redeeming  love ;  and  here- 
in lay  the  true  basis  of  man's  peace  and  blessedness. 
When  man  has  come  to  the  end  of  himself,  God  can 
show  what  He  is ;  but  not  until  then.  The  scene 
must  be  entirely  cleared  of  man  and  all  his  vain 
pretensions,  empty  boastings  and  blasphemous  rea- 
sonings, ere  God  can  or  will  reveal  Himself.  Thus 
it  was  when  man  was  hidden  behind  the  trees  of  the 
garden  that  God  unfolded  His  wondrous  plan  of  re- 
counsels  ;  but  does  all  this  set  aside  man's  responsibility  to  believe 
a  plain  testimony  set  before  him  in  God's  Word  ?  It  most  certainly 
does  no  such  thing.  But  it  does  reveal  the  sad  evil  of  man's  heart, 
which  leads  him  to  reject  God's  testimony  which  is  plainly  revealed, 
and  to  give  as  a  reason  for  so  doing,  God's  decree,  which  is  a  pro- 
found secret— known  only  to  Himself.  However,  it  will  not  avail, 
for  we  read  in  1  Thess.  i.  8,  9,  that  those  "  who  obey  not  the  gospel 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  shall  be  punished  with  everlasting 
destruction." 

Men  are  responsible  to  believe  the  gospel,  and  they  will  be  pun- 
ished for  not  believing  it.  They  are  not  responsible  to  know  any- 
thing about  God's  counsels,  inasmuch  as»they  are  not  revealed, 
and  therefore  there  can  be  no  guilt  attached  to  ignorance  concern- 
ing them.  The  apostle  could  say  to  the  Thessalonians,  "  Knowing, 
brethren  beloved,  your  election  of  God."  How  did  he  know  it? 
Was  it  by  having  access  to  the  page  of  God's  secret  and  eternal 
decrees?  By  no  means.  How  then  ?  "Because  [orz]  our  gospel 
came  not  unto  you  in  word  only,  but  also  in  power."  (1  Thess.  i.  4,5.) 
This  is  the  way  to  know  the  election  of  any.  When  the  gospel 
comes  with  power,  it  is  a  plain  proof  of  God's  election. 

But,  I  doubt  not,  the  people  who  draw  a  plea  from  the  divine 
counsels  for  rejecting  the  divine  testimony,  only  want  some  flimsy 
excuse  to  continue  in  sin.  They  really  do  not  want  God ;  and  it 
would  be  far  more  honest  in  them  to  say  so  plainly,  than  to  put 
forward  a  plea  which  is  not  merely  flimsy,  but  positively  blasphe- 
mous. Such  a  plea  will  not  avail  them  much  amid  the  terrors  of 
the  day  of  judgment,  now  fast  approaching. 


CHAPTER    III.  51 

demption  through  the  instrumentality  of  the  bruised 
seed  of  the  woman.  Here  we  are  taught  a  valuable 
principle  of  truth  as  to  .what  it  is  which  alone  will 
bring  a  man  peacefully  and  confidingly  into  the 
presence  of  God. 

It  has  been  already  remarked  that  conscience  will 
never  effect  this.  Conscience  drove  Adam  behind 
the  trees  of  the  garden ;  revelation  brought  him 
forth  into  the  presence  of  God.  The  consciousness 
of  what  he  was  terrified  him  ;  the  revelation  of  what 
God  was  tranquilized  him.  This  is  truly  consola- 
tory for  a  poor  sin-burdened  heart.  The  reality  of 
what  I  am  is  met  by  the  reality  of  what  God  is; 
and  this  is  salvation. 

There  is  a  point  where  God  and  man  must  meet, 
whether  in  grace  or  judgment,  and  that  point  is 
where  both  are  revealed  as  they  are.  Happy  are 
they  who  reach  that  point  in  grace  !  Woe  be  to 
them  who  will  have  to  reach  it  in  judgment  !  It  is 
with  what  we  are  that  God  deals  ;  and  it  is  as  He  is 
that  He  deals  with  us.  In  the  cross,  I  see  God  de- 
scending, iu  grace,  to  the  lowest  depths,  not  merely 
of  my  negative,  but  my  positive  condition  as  a  sin- 
ner. This  gives  perfect  peace.  If  God  has  met  me 
in  my  actual  condition,  and  Himself  provided  an 
adequate  remedy,  all  is  eternally  settled.  But  all 
who  do  not  thus  by  faith  see  God  in  the  cross,  will 
have  to  meet  Him  by  and  by  in  judgment,  when  He 
will  have  to  deal,  according  to  what  He  is,  with 
what  they  are. 

The  moment  a  man  is  brought  to  know  his  real 


52  GENESIS. 

state,  he  can  find  no  rest  until  he  has  found  God  in 
the  cross,  and  then  he  rests  in  God  Himself.  He, 
blessed  be  His  name,  is  the  rest  and  hiding-place  of 
the  believing  soul.  This  at  once  puts  human  works 
and  human  righteousness  in  their  proper  place.  We 
can  say,  with  truth,  that  those  who  rest  in  such 
things  cannot  possibly  have  arrived  at  the  true 
knowledge  of  themselves.  It  is  quite  impossible 
that  a  divinely-quickened  conscience  can  rest  in 
aught  save  the  perfect  sacrifice  of  the  Son  of  God. 
All  effort  to  establish  one's  own  righteousness  must 
proceed  from  ignorance  of  the  righteousness  of  God. 
Adam  might  learn,  in  the  light  of  the  divine  testi- 
mony about  "the  seed  of  the  woman,"  the  worth- 
lessiless  of  his  fig-leaf  apron.  The  magnitude  of 
that  which  had  to  be  done,  proved  the  sinner's  total 
inability  to  do  it.  Sin  had  to  be  put  away.  Could 
man  do  that  ?  Nay,  it  was  by  him  it  had  come  in. 
The  serpent's  head  had  to  be  bruised.  Could  man 
do  that  ?  Nay,  he  had  become  the  serpent's  slave. 
God's  claims  had  to  be  met.  Could  man  do  that  ? 
Nay,  he  had  already  trampled  them  under  foot. 
Death  had  to  be  abolished.  Could  man  do  that  ? 
Nay,  he  had,  by  sin,  introduced  it,  and  imparted  to 
it  its  terrible  sting. 

Thus,  in  whatever  way  wre  view  the  matter,  we  see 
the  sinner's  complete  impotency,  and,  as  a  conse- 
quence, the  presumptuous  folly  of  all  who  attempt 
to  assist  God  in  the  stupendous  work  of  redemption, 
as  all  assuredly  do  who  think  to  be  saved  in  any 
other  way  but  "by  grace,  through  faith." 


CHAPTER    III.  53 

However,  though  Adam  might,  and,  through  grace, 
did,  see  and  feel  that  he  could  never  accomplish  all 
that  had  to  be  done,  yet  God  revealed  Himself  as 
about  to  achieve  every  jot  and  tittle  thereof  by  the 
seed  of  the  woman.  In  short,  we  see  that  He  gra- 
ciously took  the  entire  matter  into  His  own  hands. 

He  made  it  altogether  a  question  between  Himself 
and  the  serpent;  for  although  the  man  and  the 
woman  were  called  upon  individually  to  reap,  in 
various  ways,  the  bitter  fruits  of  their  sin,  yet  it  was 
to  the  serpent  that  the  Lord  God  said,  "Because 
them  hast  done  this."  The  serpent  was  the  source 
of  the  ruin,  and  the  seed  of  the  woman  was  to  be 
the  source  of  the  redemption.  Adam  heard  all  this 
and  believed  it,  and,  in  the  power  of  that  belief, 
"he  called  his  wife's  name  the  mother  of  all  living." 

This  was  a  precious  fruit  of  faith  in  God's  revela- 
tion. Looking  at  the  matter  from  nature's  point  of 
view,  Eve  might  be  called,  the  mother  of  all  dying ; 
but,  in  the  judgment  of  faith,  she  was  the  mother  of 
all  living.  "His  mother  called  him  Ben-oni  (the 
son  of  my  sorrow)  ;  but  his  father  called  him  Ben- 
jamin (the  son  of  my  right  hand)." 

It  was  through  the  sustaining  energy  of  faith  that 
Adam  was  enabled  to  endure  the  terrible  results  of 
what  he  had  done.  It  was  God's  wondrous  mercy 
to  allow  him  to  hear  what  He  said  to  the  serpent, 
before  he  was  called  to  listen  to  what  He  had  to  say 
to  himself.  Had  it  not  been  so,  he  must  have  been 
plunged  in  despair.  It  is  despair  to  be  called  upon 
to  look  at  myself  without  being  able  to  look  at  God 


54  GENESIS. 

as  revealed  in  the  cross  for  my  salvation.  There  is 
no  child  of  fallen  Adam  who  could  bear  to  have  his 
eyes  opened  to  the  reality  of  what  he  is  and  what  he 
has  done,  without  being  plunged  in  despair,  unless 
he  could  take  refuge  in  the  cross.  Hence,  in  that 
place  to  which  all  who  reject  Christ  must  finally  be 
consigned,  hope  cannot  come.  There,  men's  eyes 
will  be  opened  to  the  reality  of  what  they  are  and 
what  they  have  done,  but  they  will  not  be  able  to 
find  relief  and  refuge  in  God.  What  God  is,  will 
then  involve  hopeless  perdition,  as  truly  as  what 
God  is  doth  now  involve  eternal  salvation.  The 
holiness  of  God  will  then  be  eternally  against  them, 
as  it  is  now  that  in  which  all  who  believe  are  called 
to  rejoice.  The  more  I  realize  the  holiness  of  God 
now,  the  more  I  know  my  security ;  but  in  the  case 
of  the  lost,  that  very  holiness  will  be  but  the  ratifi- 
cation of  their  eternal  doom.  Solemn — unspeakably 
solemn — reflection  ! 

We  shall  now  briefly  glance  at  the  truth  presented 
to  us  in  God's  providing  coats  for  Adam  and  Eve. 
4 'Unto  Adam,  also,  and  to  his  wife,  did  the  Lord 
God  make  coats  of  skins,  and  clothed  them."  We 
have  here,  in  figure,  the  great  doctrine  of  divine 
righteousness  set  forth.  The  robe  which  God  pro- 
vided was  an  effectual  covering,  because  He  provided 
it;  just  as  the  apron  was  an  ineffectual  covering, 
because  man  had  provided  it.  Moreover,  God's 
coat  was  founded  upon  blood-shedding ;  Adam's 
apron  "was  not.  So  also  now,  God's  righteousness 
is  set  forth  in  the  cross ;  man's  righteousness  is  set 


CHAPTER    III.  55 

forth  in  the  works — the  sin-stained  works — of  his 
own  hands.  When  Adam  stood  clothed  in  the  coat 
of  skin  he  could  not  say  he  was  naked,  nor  had 
he  any  occasion  to  hide  himself.  The  sinner  may 
feel  perfectly  at  rest  when,  by  faith,  he  knows  that 
God  has  clothed  him  ;  but  to  feel  at  rest  till  then, 
can  only  be  the  result  of  presumption  or  ignorance. 
To  know  that  the  dress  I  wear,  and  in  which  I  ap- 
pear before  God,  is  of  His  own 
my  heart  at  perfect  rest.  Thei 
permanent  rest  in  aught  else. 

The  closing  verses  of  this  clu 
struction.  Fallen  man,  in  his  fall 
be  allowed  to  eat  of  the  fruit  of 
that  would  entail  upon  him  endless  wretcl 
this  world.  To  take  of  the  tree  of  life,  and  eat, 
and  live  forever  in  our  present  condition,  would  be 
unmingled  misery.  The  tree  of  life  can  only  be 
tasted  in  resurrection.  To  live  forever  in  a  frail 
tabernacle,  in  a  body  of  sin  and  death,  would  be  in- 
tolerable. Wherefore,  the  Lord  God  "drove  out  the 
man."  He  drove  him  out  into  a  world  which  every- 
where exhibited  the  lamentable  results  of  his  fall. 
The  cherubim  and  the  flaming  sword,  too,  forbid 
fallen  man  to  pluck  the  fruit  of  the  tree  of  life; 
while  God's  revelation  pointed  him  to  the  death  and 
resurrection  of  the  seed  of  the  woman,  as  that 
wherein  life  was  to  be  found  beyond  the  power  of 
death. 

Thus  Adam  was  a  happier  and  a  safer  man  out- 
side the  bounds  of  paradise  than  he  had  been  within, 
5 


56  GENESIS. 

for  this  reason:  that  within,  his  life  depended  upon 
himself;  whereas  outside,  it  depended  upon  another, 
even  a  promised  Christ.  And  as  he  looked  up  and 
beheld  "the  cherubim  and  the  flaming  sword,"  he 
could  bless  the  hand  that  had  set  them  there,  "to 
keep  the  way  of  the  tree  of  life,"  inasmuch  as  the 
same  hand  had  opened  a  better,  a  safer  and  a  hap- 
pier way  to  that  tree.  If  the  cherubim  and  flaming 
sword  stopped  up  the  way  to  paradise,  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  has  opened  "a  new  and  living  way" 
into  the  holiest  of  all.  "I  am  the  way,  the  truth 
and  the  life ;  no  man  cometh  unto  the  Father,  but 
by  Me."  (Compare  John  xiv.  6;  Heb.  x.  20.)  In 
the  knowledge  of  this,  the  believer  now  moves  on- 
ward through  a  world  which  is  under  the  curse — - 
where  the  traces  of  sin  are  visible  on  all  hands.  He 
has  found  his  way,  by  faith,  to  the  bosom  of  the 
Father ;  and  while  he  can  secretly  repose  there,  he 
is  cheered  by  the  blessed  assurance  that  the  One 
who  has  conducted  him  thither  is  gone  to  prepare  a 
place  in  the  many  mansions  of  the  Father's  house, 
and  that  He  will  soon  come  again  and  receive  him 
unto  Himself,  amid  the  glory  of  the  Father's  king- 
dom. Thus,  in  the  bosom,  the  house  and  the  king- 
dom of  the  Father,  the  believer  finds  his  present 
portion,  his  future  home  and  reward. 


CHAPTERS  IV  &  V. 

AS  each  section  of  the  Book  of  Genesis  opens 
before  us,  we  are  furnished  with  fresh  evidence 
of  the  fact  that  we  are  traveling  over,  what  a  recent 
writer  has  well  termed,  "the  seed-plot  of  the  whole 
Bible"  ;  and  not  only  so,  but  the  seed-plot  of  man's 
entire  history. 

Thus,  in  the  fourth  chapter,  we  have,  in  the  per- 
sons of  Cain  and  Abel,  the  first  examples  of  a  re- 
ligious man  of  the  world  and  of  a  genuine  man  of 
faith.  Born,  as  they  were,  outside  of  Eden,  and 
being  the  sons  of  fallen  Adam,  they  could  have  no- 
thing, naturally,  to  distinguish  them  one  from  the 
other.  They  were  both  sinners, — both  had  a  fallen 
nature, — neither  was  innocent.  It  is  well  to  be  clear 
in  reference  to  this,  in  order  that  the  reality  of  di- 
vine grace  and  the  integrity  of  faith  may  be  fully 
and  distinctly  seen.  If  the  distinction  between  Cain 
and  Abel  were  founded  in  'nature,  then  it  follows,  as 
an  inevitable  conclusion,  that  they  were  not  the  par- 
takers of  the  fallen  nature  of  their  father,  nor  the 
participators  in  the  circumstances  of  his  fall,  and 
hence  there  could  be  no  room  for  the  display  of 
grace  and  the  exercise  of  faith. 

Some  would  teach  us  that  every  man  is  born  with 
qualities  and  capacities  which,  if  rightly  used,  will 
enable  him  to  work  his  way  back  to  God.  This  is  a 
plain  denial  of  the  fact  so  clearly  set  forth  in  the 


58  GENESIS. 

history  now  before  us.  Cain  and  Abel  were  born, 
not  inside,  but  outside  of  paradise, — they  were  the 
sons,  not  of  innocent,  but  of  fallen  Adam.  They 
came  into  the  world  as  the  partakers  of  the  nature 
of  their  father ;  and  it  mattered  not  in  what  phase 
that  nature  might  display  itself,  it  was  nature  still — 
fallen,  ruined,  irremediable  nature.  "That  which  is 
born  of  the  flesh  is  [not  merely  fleshly,  but]  flesh, 
and  that  which  is  born  of  the  Spirit  is  [not  merely 
spiritual,  but]  spirit."  (John  iii.) 

If  ever  there  was  a  fair  opportunity  for  the  dis- 
tinctive qualities,  capacities,  resources  and  tenden- 
cies of  nature  to  manifest  themselves,  the  lifetime 
of  Cain  and  Abel  furnished  it.  If  there  were  aught 
in  nature  whereby  it  could  recover  its  lost  innocence 
and  establish  itself  again  within  the  bounds  of  Eden, 
this  was  the  moment  for  its  display.  But  there  was 
nothing  of  the  kind.  They  were  both  lost.  They 
were  "flesh."  They  were  not  innocent.  Adam  lost 
his  innocence  and  never  regained  it.  He  can  only 
be  looked  at  as  the  fallen  head  of  a  fallen  race, 
who,  by  his  "disobedience,"  were  made  "sinners." 
(Rom.  v.  19.)  He  became,  so  far  as  he  was  person- 
ally concerned,  the  corrupt  source  from  whence  have 
emanated  the  corrupt  streams  of  ruined  and  guilty 
humanity — the  dead  trunk  from  which  have  shot 
forth  the  branches  of  a  dead  humanity,  morally  and 
spiritually  dead. 

True,  as  we  have  already  remarked,  he  himself 
was  made  a  subject  of  grace,  and  the  possessor  and 
exhibitor  of  a  lively  faith  in  a  promised  Saviour; 


CHAPTERS    IV   &  V.  59 

but  this  was  not  anything  natural,  but  something 
entirely  divine.  And,  inasmuch  as  it  was  not  nat- 
ural, neither  was  it  within  the  range  of  nature's 
capacity  to  communicate  it.  It  was  not,  by  any 
means,  hereditary.  Adam  could  not  bequeath  nor 
impart  his  faith  to  Cain  or  Abel.  His  possession, 
thereof  was  simply  the  fruit  of  love  divine.  It  was 
implanted  in  his  soul  by  divine  power,  and  he  had 
not  divine  power  to  communicate  it  to  another. 
Whatever  was  natural,  Adam-  could,  in  the  way  of 
nature,  communicate  ;  but  nothing  more.  And  see- 
ing that  he,  as  a  father,  was  in  a  condition  of  ruin, 
his  son  could  only  be  in  the  same.  As  is  the  beget- 
ter, so  are  they  also  that  are  begotten  of  him.  They 
must,  of  necessity,  partake  of  the  nature  of  him 
from  whom  they  have  sprung, — "As  is  the  earthy, 
such  are  they  also  that  are  earthy."  (1  Cor.  xv.  48.) 
Nothing  can  be  more  important,  in  its  way,  than 
a  correel  understanding  of  the  doctrine  of  federal 
headship.  If  my  reader  will  turn,  for  a  moment,  to 
Rom.  v.  12-21,  he  will  find  that  the  inspired  apostle 
looks  at  the  whole  human  race  as  comprehended 
under  two  heads.  I  do  not  attempt  to  dwell  on  the 
passage,  but  merely  refer  to  it  in  connection  with 
the  subject  in  hand.  The  fifteenth  chapter  of  first 
Corinthians  will  also  furnish  instruction  of  a  similar 
character.  In  the  first  man,  we  have  sin,  disobedi- 
ence and  death :  in  the  Second  Man,  we  have  right- 
eousness, obedience  and  life.  As  we  derive  a  nature 
from  the  former,  so  do  we  also  from  the  latter.  No 
doubt  each  nature  will  display,  in  each  specific  case, 


60  GENESIS. 

its  own  peculiar  energies ;  it  will  manifest,  in.  each 
individual  possessor  thereof,  its  own  peculiar  powers. 
Still  there  is  the  absolute  possession  of  a  real,  ab- 
stract, positive  nature. 

Now,  as  the  mode  in  which  we  derive  a  nature 
from  the  first  man  is  by  birth,  so  the  mode  in  which 
we  derive  a  nature  from  the  Second  Man  is  by  new 
birth.  Being  born,  wre  partake  of  the  nature  of  the 
former;  being  "born  again,"  we  partake  of  the  na- 
ture of  the  latter.  A  newly  born  infant,  though 
entirely  incapable  of  performing  the  act  which  re- 
duced Adam  to  the  condition  of  a  fallen  being,  is, 
nevertheless,  a  partaker  of  his  nature  ;  and  so,  also, 
a  newly  born  child  of  God — a  newly  regenerated 
soul,  though  having  nothing  whatever  to  do  with  the 
working  out  of  the  perfect  obedience  of  "the  man 
Christ  Jesus,"  is,  nevertheless,  a  partaker  of  His 
nature.  True  it  is,  that  attached  to  the  former  na- 
ture there  is  sin ;  and  attached  to  the  latter,  there 
is  righteousness, — man's  sin,  in  the  former  case; 
God's  righteousness  in  the  latter:  yet,  all  the  while, 
there  is  the  actual,  bona  fide  participation  of  a  real 
nature,  let  the  adjuncts  be  what  they  may.  The 
child  of  Adam  partakes  of  the  human  nature  and 
its  adjuncts  ;  the  child  of  God  partakes  of  the  divine 
nature  and  its  adjuncts.  The  former  nature  is  ac- 
cording to  "the  will  of  man"  (John  i.),  the  latter 
is  according  to  "the  will  of  God," — as  James,  by 
the  Holy  Ghost,  teaches  us,  "of  His  own  will  begat 
He  us  by  the  Word  of  Truth."  (James  i.  18.) 

From  all  that  has  been  said,  it  follows,  that  Abel 


CHAPTERS    IV  &  V.  61 

was  not  distinguished  from  his  brother  Cain  by  any- 
thing natural.  The  distinction  between  them  was 
not  grounded  upon  aught  in  their  nature  or  circum- 
stances, for,  as  to  these,  "there  was  no  difference." 
What,  therefore,  made  the  vast  difference  ?  The 
answer  is  as  simple  as  the  gospel  of  the  grace  of 
God  can  make  it.  The  difference  was  not  in  them- 
selves, in  their  nature  or  their  circumstances  ;  it  lay 
entirely  in  their  sacrifices.  This  makes  the  matter 
most  simple  for  any  truly  convicted  sinner — for  smy 
one  who  truly  feels  that  he  not  only  partakes  of  a 
fallen  nature,  but  is  himself,  also,  a  sinner.  The 
history  of  Abel  opens,  to  such  an  one,  the  only  true 
ground  of  his  approach  to,  his  standing  before,  and 
his  relationship  with,  God.  It  teaches  him,  dis- 
tinctly, that  he  cannot  come  to  God  on  the  ground 
of  anything  in,  of,  or  pertaining  to,  nature  ;  ami  he 
must  seek,  outside  himself,  and  in  the  person  and 
work  of  another,  the  true  and  everlasting  basis  of 
his  connection  with  the  holy,  the  just  and  only  true 
God.  The  eleventh  chapter  of  Hebrews  sets  the 
whole  subject  before  us  in  the  most  distinct  and 
comprehensive  way, — "By  faith  Abel  offered  unto 
God  a  more  excellent  sacrifice  [n^stora  Ovdiav~] 
than  Cain,  by  which  he  obtained  witness  that  he  was 
righteous,  God  bearing  witness  [napTvpowros]  to 
his  gifts;  and  by  it  he  being  dead  yet  speaketh." 
Here  we  are  taught  that  it  was  in  nowise  a  question 
as  to  the  men,  but  only  as  to  their  "sacrifice" — it 
was  not  a  question  as  to  the  offerer,  but  as  to  his 
offering.  Here  lay  the  grand  distinction  between 


62  GENESIS. 

Cain  and  Abel.  My  reader  cannot  be  too  simple  in 
his  apprehension  of  this  point,  for  therein  lies  in- 
volved the  truth  as  to  any  sinner's  standing  before 
God. 

And  now  let  vis  inquire  what  the  offerings  were. 
"And,  in  process  of  time,  it  came  to  pass  that  Cain 
brought,  of  the  fruit  of  the  ground,  an  offering  unto 
Jehovah.  And  Abel,  he  also  brought  of  the  first- 
lings of  his  flock,  and  of  the  fat  thereof.  And  the 
Lord  had  respect  unto  Abel  and  to  his  offering ;  but 
unto  Cain  and  to  his  offering  He  had  not  respect." 
(Gen.  iv.  3-5.)  This  passage  sets  the  difference 
clearly  before  us.  Cain  offered  to  Jehovah  the 
fruit  of  a  cursed  earth,  and  that,  moreover,  without 
any  blood  to  remove  the  curse.  He  presented 
"an  unbloody  sacrifice,"  simply  because  he  had 
no  faith.  Had  he  possessed  that  divine  principle, 
it  would  have  taught  him,  even  at  this  early  mo- 
ment, that  "without  shedding  of  blood  there  is  no 
remission."  (Heb.  ix.)  This  is  a  great  cardinal 
truth.  The  penalty  of  sin  is  death.  Cain  was  a 
sinner,  and,  as  such,  death  stood  between  him  and 
Jehovah ;  but,  in  his  offering,  there  was  no  recogni- 
tion whatever  of  this  fact, — there  was  no  prcsenta- 
-tion  of  a  sacrificed  life,  to  meet  the  claims  of  divine 
holiness,  or  to  answer  to  his  own  true  condition  as  a 
sinner.  He  treated  Jehovah  as  though  He  were  al- 
together such  an  one  as  himself,  who  could  accept 
the  sin-stained  fruit  of  a  cursed  earth. 

All  this,  and  much  more,  lay  involved  in  Cain's 
"unbloody  sacrifice."  He  displayed  entire  igno- 


CHAPTERS    IV  &  V.  63 

ranee  in  reference  to  divine  requirements,  in  refer- 
ence to  his  own  character  and  condition  as  a  lost 
and  guilty  sinner,  and  in  reference  to  the  true  state 
of  that  ground,  the  fruit  of  which  he  presumed  to 
offer.  No  doubt  reason  might  say,  What  more  ac- 
ceptable offering  could  a  man  present  than  that 
which  he  had  produced  by  the  labor  of  his  hands 
and  the  sweat  of  his  brow  ?  Reason,  and  even 
man's  religious  mind,  may  think  thus,  but  God 
thinks  quite  differently ;  and  faith  is  always  sure  to 
agree  with  God's  thoughts.  God  teaches,  and  faith 
believes,  that  there  must  be  a  sacrificed  life,  else 
there  can  be  no  approach  to  God. 

Thus,  when  we  look  at  the  ministry  of  the  Lord 
Jesus,  we  see,  at  once,  that,  had  He  not  died  upon 
the  cross,  all  His  services  would  have  proved  utterly 
unavailing  as  regards  the  establishment  of  our  rela- 
tionship with  God.  True,  "He  went  about  doing 
good"  all  His  life;  but  it  was  His  death  that  rent 
the  vail.  (Matt,  xxvii.  51.)  Naught  but  His  death 
could  have  done  so.  Had  He  continued  to  the 
present  moment  "going  about  doing  good,"  the 
vail  would  have  remained  entire,  to  bar  the  worship- 
er's approach  into  "the  holiest  of  all."  Hence  we 
can  see  the  false  ground  on  which  Cain  stood  as  an 
offerer  and  a  worshiper.  An  unpardoned  sinner 
coming  into  the  presence  of  Jehovah  to  present  "an 
unbloody  sacrifice,"  could  only  be  regarded  as 
guilty  of  the  highest  degree  of  presumption.  True, 
he  had  toiled  to  produce  his  offering;  but  what  of 
that  ?  Could  a  sinner's  toil  remove  the  curse  and 


64  GENESIS. 

stain  of  sin  ?  could  it  satisfy  the  claims  of  an  infi- 
nitely holy  God  ?  could  it  furnish  a  proper  ground 
of  acceptance  for  a  sinner  ?  could  it  set  aside  the 
penalty  which  was  due  to  sin  ?  could  it  rob  death 
of  its  sting,  or  the  grave  of  its  victory  ? — could  it 
do  any  or  all  of  these  things  ?  Impossible.  "With- 
out shedding  of  blood  is  no  remission."  Cain's 
"unbloody  sacrifice,"  like  every  other  unbloody 
sacrifice,  was  not  only  worthless,  but  actually  abom- 
inable, in  the  divine  estimation.  It  not  only  demon- 
strated his  entire  ignorance  of  his  own  condition, 
but  also  of  the  divine  character.  "God  is  not 
worshiped  with  men's  hands,  as  though  He  needed 
anything"  ;  and  yet  Cain  thought  He  could  be  thus 
approached, — and  every  mere  religionist  thinks  the 
same.  Cain  has  had  many  millions  of  followers, 
from  age  to  age.  Cain-worship  has  abounded  all 
over  the  world.  It  is  the  worship  of  every  uncon- 
verted soul,  and  is  maintained  by  every  false  system 
of  religion  under  the  sun. 

Man  would  fain  make  God  a  receiver  instead  of  a 
giver;  but  this  cannot  be;  for  "it  is  more  blessed 
to  give  than  to  receive"  ;  and  assuredly  God  must 
have  the  more  blessed  place.  "Without  all  contra- 
diction, the  less  is  blessed  of  the  better."  "Who 
hath  first  given  to  Him  ? ' '  God  can  accept  the 
smallest  gift  from  a  heart  which  has  learnt  the  deep 
truth  contained  in  those  words — "Of  Thine  own 
have  we  given  Thee"  ;  but  the  moment  a  man  pre- 
sumes to  take  the  place  of  the  "first"  giver,  God's 
reply  is,  "  If  I  were  hungry,  I  would  not  tell  thee ' ' ; 


CHAPTERS    IV  &  V.  65 

for  "He  is  not  worshiped  with  men's  hands,  as 
though  He  needed  anything,  seeing  He  giveth  to  all 
life  and  breath  and  all  things."  The  great  Giver 
of  "all  things"  cannot  possibly  "need  anything." 
Praise  is  all  that  we  can  offer  to  God ;  but  this  can 
only  be  offered  in  the  full  and  clear  intelligence  that 
our  sins  are  all  put  away ;  and  this,  again,  can  only 
be  known  by  faith  in  the  virtue  of  an  accomplished 
atonement. 

My  reader  may  pause  here,  and  read  prayerfully 
th»  following  Scriptures ;  namely,  Psalm  1 ;  Isaiah 
i.  11-18,  and  Acts  xvii.  22-34,  in  all  of  which  he 
will  find  distinctly  laid  down  the  truth  as  to  man's 
true  position  before  God,  as  also  the  proper  ground 
of  worship. 

Let  us  now  consider  Abel's  sacrifice.  "And 
Abel,  he  also  brought  of  the  firstlings  of  his  flock, 
and  of  the  fat  thereof."  In  other  words,  he  entered, 
by  faith,  into  the  glorious  truth,  that  God  could  be 
approached  by  sacrifice  ;  that  there  was  such  a  thing 
as  a  sinner's  placing  the  death  of  another  between 
himself  and  the  consequence  of  his  sin ;  that  the 
claims  of  God's  nature  and  the  attributes  of  His 
character  could  be  met  by  the  blood  of  a  spotless 
victim — a  victim  offered  to  meet  God's  demands 
and  the  sinner's  deep  necessities.  This  is,  in  short, 
the  doctrine  of  the  cross,  in  which  alone  the  con- 
science of  a  sinner  can  find  repose,  because  therein 
God  is  fully  glorified. 

Every  divinely  convicted  sinner  must  feel  that 
death  and  judgment  are  before  him,  as  "the  due 


66  GENESIS. 

reward  of  his  deeds"  ;  nor  can  he,  by  aught  that  he 
can  accomplish,  alter  that  destiny.  He  may  toil  and 
labor ;  he  may,  by  the  sweat  of  his  brow,  produce 
an  offering ;  he  may  make  vows  and  resolutions ;  he 
may  alter  his  way  of  life ;  he  may  reform  his  out- 
ward character;  he  may  be  temperate,  moral,  up- 
right, and,  in  the  human  acceptation  of  the  wrord, 
religious  ;  he  may,  though  entirely  destitute  of  faith, 
read,  pray,  and  hear  sermons.  In  short,  he  may  do 
anything  or  everything  which  lies  within  the  range 
of  human  competency;  but,  notwithstanding  J^l, 
41  death"  and  "judgment"  are  before  him.  He  has 
not  been  able  to  disperse  those  two  heavy  clouds 
which  have  gathered  upon  the  horizon.  There  they 
stand  ;  and,  so  far  from  being  able  to  remove  them 
by  all  his  doings,  he  can  only  live  in  the  gloomy  an- 
ticipation of  the  moment  when  they  shall  burst  upon 
his  guilty  head.  It  is  impossible  for  a  sinner,  by 
his  own  works,  to  place  himself  in  life  and  triumph 
at  the  other  side  of  " death"  and  " judgment" — 
yea,  his  very  works  are  only  performed  for  the  pur- 
pose of  preparing  him,  if  possible,  for  those  dreaded 
realities. 

Here,  however,  is  exactly  where  the  cross  comes 
in.  In  that  cross,  the  convicted  sinner  can  behold  a 
divine  provision  for  all  his  guilt  and  all  his  need. 
There,  too,  he  can  see  death  and  judgment  entirely 
removed  from  the  scene,  and  life  and  glory  set  in 
their  stead.  Christ  has  cleared  the  prospect  of 
death  and  judgment,  so  far  as  the  true  believer  is 
concerned,  and  filled  it  with  life,  righteousness  and 


CHAPTERS    IV   &  V.  G7 

glory.  "He  hath  abolished  death,  and  brought  life 
and  incorruptibility  to  light  through  the  gospel." 
(2  Tim.  i.  10.)  He  has  glorified  God  in  the  putting 
away  of  that  which  would  have  separated  us  forever 
from  His  holy  and  blissful  presence.  "He  has  put 
away  sin,"  and  hence  it  is  gone.  (Heb.  ix.  26.)  All 
this  is,  in  type,  set  forth  in  AbeFs  "more  excellent 
sacrifice."  There  was  no  attempt,  on  Abel's  part, 
to  set  aside  the  truth  as  to  his  own  condition  and 
proper  place  as  a  guilty  sinner — no  attempt  to  turn 
aside  the  edge  of  the  flaming  sword,  and  force  his 
way  back  to  the  tree  of  life — no  presumptuous  offer- 
ing of  an  "unbloody  sacrifice" — no  presentation  of 
the  fruit  of  a  cursed  earth  to  Jehovah — he  took  the 
real  gr.pund  of  a  sinner,  and,  as  such,  set  the  death 
of  a  victim  between  him  and  his  sins,  and  between 
his  sins  and  the  holiness  of  a  sin-hating  God.  This 
was  most  simple.  Abel  deserved  death  and  judg- 
ment, but  he  found  a  substitute. 

Thus  is  it  with  every  poor,  helpless,  self-con- 
demned, conscience-smitten  sinner.  Christ  is  his 
substitute,  his  ransom,  his  most  excellent  sacrifice, 
his  ALL.  Such  an  one  will  feel,  like  Abel,  that  the 
fruit  of  the  ground  could  never  avail  for  him ;  that 
were  he  to  present  to  God  the  fairest  fruits  of  earth, 
he  would  still  have  a  sin-stained  conscience,  inas- 
much as  "without  shedding  of  blood  is  no  remis- 
sion." The  richest  fruits  and  the  most  fragrant 
flowers,  in  the  greatest  profusion,  could  not  remove 
a  single  stain  from  the  conscience.  Nothing  but  the 
perfect  sacrifice  of  the  Son  of  God  can  give  ease  to 


08  GENESIS.. 

the  heart  and  conscience.  All  who  by  faith  lay  hold 
of  that  divine  reality,  will  enjoy  a  peace  which  the 
world  can  neither  give  nor  take  awajr.  It  is  faith 
which  puts  the  soul  in  present  possession  of  this 
peace.  "Being  justified  by  faith,  we  have  peace 
with  God  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ."  (Rom. 
v.  1.)  "By  faith  Abel  offered  unto  God  a  more 
excellent  sacrifice  than  Cain." 

It  is  not  a  question  of  feeling,  as  so  many  would 
make  it :  it  is  entirely  a  question  of  faith  in  an  ac- 
complished fact — faith  wrought  in  the  soul  of  a  sin- 
ner, by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  This  faith  is 
something  quite  different  from  a  mere  feeling  of  the 
heart,  or  an  assent  of  the  intellect.  Feeling  is  not 
faith :  intellectual  assent  is  not  faith.  Some  would 
make  faith  to  be  the  mere  assent  of  the  intellect  to 
a  certain  proposition.  This  is  fearfully  false.  It 
makes  the  question  of  faith  human,  whereas  it  is 
really  divine, — it  reduces  it  to  the  level  of  man, 
whereas  it  really  comes  from  God.  Faith  is  not  a 
thing  of  to-day  or  to-morrow.  It  is  an  imperishable 
principle,  emanating  from  an  eternal  source,  even 
God  Himself;  it  lays  hold  of  God's  truth,  and  sets 
the  soul  in  God's  presence. 

Mere  feeling  and  sentimentality  can  never  rise 
above  the  source  from  whence  they  emanate,  and 
that  source  is  self;  but  faith  has  to  do  with  God 
and  His  eternal  Word,  and  is  a  living  link,  connect- 
ing the  heart  that  possesses  it  with  God  who  gives  it. 
Human  feelings,  however  intense ;  human  senti- 
ments, however  refined,  could  not  connect  the  soul 


CHAPTERS    IV   &  V.  69 

with  God.  They  are  neither  divine  nor  eternal,  but 
are  human  and  evanescent.  They  are  like  Jonah's 
gourd,  which  sprang  up  in  a  night  and  perished  in  a 
night.  Not  so  faith.  That  precious  principle  par- 
takes of  all  the  value,  all  the  power,  and  all  the 
reality  of  the  source  from  whence  it  emanates,  and 
the  object  with  which  it  has  to  do.  It  justifies  the 
soul  (Rom.  v.  1.);  it  purifies  the  heart  (Acts  xv. 
9.);  it  works  by  love  (Gal.  v.  6.);  it  overcomes 
the  world  (1  John  v.  4.).  Feeling  and  sentiment 
never  could  accomplish  such  results ;  they  belong 
to  nature  and  to  earth,  faith  belongs  to  God  and  to 
heaven ;  they  are  occupied  with  self,  faith  is  occu- 
pied with  Christ ;  they  look  inward  and  downward, 
faith  looks  outward  and  upward ;  they  leave  the  soul 
in  darkness  and  doubt,  faith  leads  it  into  light  and 
peace ;  they  have  to  do  with  one's  own  fluctuating 
condition,  faith  has  to  do  with  God's  immutable 
truth  and  Christ's  eternally  enduring  sacrifice. 

No  doubt  faith  will  produce  feelings  and  senti- 
ments— spiritual  feelings  and  truthful  sentiments — 
but  the  fruits  of  faith  must  never  be  confounded 
with  faith  itself.  I  am  not  justified  by  feelings,  nor 
yet  by  faith  and  feelings,  but  simply  by  faith.  And 
why  ?  Because  faith  believes  God  when  He  speaks 
—it  takes  Him  at  His  word  ;  it  apprehends  Him  as 
He  has  revealed  Himself  in  the  Person  and  work  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  This  is  life,  righteousness 
and  peace.  To  apprehend  God  as  He  is,  is  the  sum 
of  all  present  and  eternal  blessedness.  When  the 
soul  finds  out  God,  it  has  found  out  all  it  can  possi- 


70  GENESIS. 

bly  need,  here  or  hereafter;  but  lie  can  only  be 
known  by  His  own  revelation,  and  by  the  faith  which 
He  Himself  imparts,  and  which,  moreover,  always 
seeks  divine  revelation  as  its  proper  object. 

Thus,  then,  we  can,  in  some  measure,  enter  into 
the  meaning  and  power  of  the  statement,  "By  faith 
Abel  offered  unto  God  a  more  excellent  sacrifice 
than  Cain."  Cain  had  no  faith,  and  therefore  he 
offered  an  unbloody  sacrifice :  Abel  had  faith,  and 
therefore  he  offered  both  "blood"  and  "fat,"  which, 
in  type,  set  forth  the  presentation  of  the  life,  and 
also  the  inherent  excellency  of  the  Person  of  Christ. 
"The  blood"  set  forth  the  former ;  "the  fat"  shad- 
owed forth  the  latter.  Both  blood  and  fat  were 
forbidden  to  be  eaten,  under  the  Mosaic  economy. 
The  blood  is  the  life ;  and  man,  under  law,  had  no 
title  to  life.  But,  in  the  sixth  of  John,  we  are 
taught,  that  unless  we  eat  blood,  we  have  no  life  in 
us.  Christ  is  the  life.  There  is  not  a  spark  of  life 
outside  of  Him.  All  out  of  Christ  is  death.  "In 
Him  was  life,"  and  in  none  else. 

Now,  He  gave  up  His  life  on  the  cross ;  and  to 
that  life  sin  was,  by  imputation,  attached,  when  the 
blessed  One  was  nailed  to  the  cursed  tree.  Hence, 
in  giving  up  His  life,  He  gave  up  also  the  sin  at- 
tached thereto,  so  that  it  is' effectually  put  away, 
having  been  left  in  His  grave,  from  which  He  rose 
triumphant,  in  the  power  of  a  new  life,  to  which 
righteousness  as  distinctly  attaches  itself  as  did  sin 
to  that  life  which  He  gave  up  on  the  cross.  This 
will  help  us  to  an  understanding  of  an  expression 


CHAPTERS    IV   &  V.  71 

used  by  our  blessed  Lord  after  His  resurrection,— 
"A  spirit  hath  not  flesh  and  bones,  as  ye  see  Me 
luive."  He  did  not  say,  flesh  and  blood  ;  because, 
in  resurrection,  He  had  not  assumed  into  His  sacred 
person  the  blood  which  He  had  shed  out  upon  the 
cross  as  an  atonement  for  sin.  ^The  life  of  the 
flesh  is  in  the  blood,  and  I  have  given  it  to  you  upon 
the  altar,  to  make  an  atonement  for  your  souls :  for 
it  is  the  blood  which  maketh  an  atonement  for  the 
soul."  (Lev.  xvii.  11.)  Close  attention  to  this  point 
will  have  the  effect  of  deepening  in  our  souls  the 
sense  of  the  completeness  of  the  putting  away  of 
sin  by  the  death  of  Christ ;  and  we  know  that  what- 
ever tends  to  deepen  our  sense  of  that  glorious 
reality,  must  necessarily  tend  to  the  fuller  establish- 
ment of  our  peace,  and  to  the  more  effectual  pro- 
motion of  the  glory  of  Christ,  as  connected  with 
our  testimony  and  service. 

We  have  already  referred  to  a  point  of  much 
interest  and  value,  in  the  history  of  Cain  and  Abel, 
and  that  is,  the  entire  identification  of  each  with  the 
offering  which  he  presented.  My  reader  cannot 
possibly  bestow  too  much  attention  upon  this.  The 
question,  in  each  case,  was  not  as  to  the  person  of 
the  offerer,  but  entirely  as  to  the  character  of  his 
offering.  Hence,  of  Abel  we  read  that  "God  testi- 
fied of  his  gifts."  He  did  not  bear  witness  to  Abel, 
but  to  Abel's  sacrifice  ;  and  this  fixes,  distinctly,  the 
proper  ground  of  a  believer's  peace  and  acceptance 
before  God. 

There   is   a   constant   tendency  in   the   heart  to 
G 


72  GENESIS. 

ground  our  peace  and  acceptance  upon  something 
in  or  about  ourselves,  even  though  we  admit  that 
that  something  is  wrought  by  the  Holy  Ghost. 
Hence  arises  the  constant  looking  m,  when  the 
Holy  Ghost  would  ever  have  us  looking  out.  The 
question  for  every  believer  is  not,  What  am  I  ?  but, 
What  is  Christ  ?  Having  come  to  God  ' '  in  the  name 
of  Jesus,"  he  is  wholly  identified  with  Him,  and 
accepted  in  His  name,  and,  moreover,  can  no  more 
be  rejected  than  the  One  in  whose  name  he  has 
come.  Before  ever  a  question  can  be  raised  as  to 
the  feeblest  believer,  it  must  be  raised  as  to  Christ 
Himself.  But  this  latter  is  clearly  impossible,  and 
thus  the  security  of  the  believer  is  established  upon 
a  foundation  which  nothing  can  possibly  move.  Be- 
ing in  himself  a  poor  worthless  sinner,  he  has  come 
in  the  name  of  Christ,  he  is  identified  with  Christ, 
accepted  in  and  as  Christ,  bound  up  in  the  same 
bundle  of  life  with  Christ.  God  testifies  not  of  him, 
but  of  his  gift,  and  his  gift  is  Christ.  All  this  is 
most  tranquilizing  and  consolatory.  It  is  our  happy 
privilege  to  be  able,  in  the  confidence  of  faith,  to 
refer  every  objection,  and  every  objector,  to  Christ 
and  His  finished  atonement.  All  our  springs  are  in 
Him :  in  Him  we  boast  all  the  day  long.  Our  con- 
fidence is  not  in  ourselves,  but  in  Him  who  hath 
wrought  everything  for  us.  We  hang  on  His  name, 
trust  in  His  work,  gaze  on  His  Person,  and  wait  for 
His  coming. 

But  the  carnal  mind  at  once  displays  its  enmity 
against  all  this  truth  which  so  gladdens  and  satisfies 


CHAPTERS    IV  &  V.  73 

the  heart  of  a  believer.  Thus  it  was  with  Cain, — 
"He  was  very  wroth,  and  his  countenance  fell." 
That  which  filled  Abel  with  peace,  filled  Cain  with 
wrath.  Cain,  in  unbelief,  despised  the  only  way  in 
which  a  sinner  could  come  to  God.  He  refused  to 
offer  blood,  without  which  there  can  be  no  remis- 
sion ;  and  then,  because  he  was  not  received,  in  his 
sins,  and  because  Abel  was  accepted,  in  his  gift, 
"he  wras  wroth,  and  his  countenance  fell."  And 
yet,  how  else  could  it  be  ?  He  should  either  be  re- 
ceived with  his  sins  or  without  them  ;  but  God  could 
not  receive  Him  with  them,  and  he  would  not  bring 
the  blood  which  alone  maketh  atonement,  and  there- 
fore he  was  rejected,  and,  being  rejected,  he  mani- 
fests, in  his  ways,  the  fruits  of  corrupt  religion.  He 
persecutes  and  murders  the  true  witness — the  ac- 
cepted, justified  man — the  man  of  faith ;  and,  in  so 
doing,  he  stands  as  the  model  and  forerunner  of  all 
false  religionists,  in  every  age.  At  all  times,  and  in 
all  places,  men  have  shown  themselves  more  ready 
to  persecute  on  religious  grounds  than  on  any  other. 
This  is  Cain-like.  Justification — full,  perfect,  un- 
qualified justification,  by  faith  only — makes  God 
everything,  and  man  nothing;  and  man  does  not 
like  this — it  causes  his  countenance  to  fall,  and 
draws  out  his  anger.  Not  that  he  can  give  any 
reason  for  his  anger ;  for  it  is  not,  as  we  have  seen, 
a  question  of  man  at  all,  but  only  of  the  ground  on 
which  he  appears  before  God.  Had  Abel  been  ac- 
cepted on  the  ground  of  aught  in  himself,  then, 
indeed,  Cain's  wrath,  and  his  fallen  countenance, 


74  GENESIS. 

would  have  had  some  just  foundation;  but,  inas- 
much as  he  was  accepted  exclusively  on  the  ground 
of  his  offering,  and  inasmuch  as  it  was  not  to  him, 
but  to  his  gift,  that  Jehovah  bore  testimony,  his 
wrath  was  entirely  without  any  proper  basis.  This 
is  brought  out  in  Jehovah's  word  to  Cain, — "If  thou 
doest  well,  (or,  as  the  LXX  reads  it,  "if  thou  offer 
correctly  [opQoaS  Kpo6eytyKijs]JJ)  shalt  thou  not  be 
accepted  ? ' '  The  well-doing  had  reference  to  the 
offering.  Abel  did  well  by  hiding  himself  behind 
an  acceptable  sacrifice :  Cain  did  badly  by  bringing 
an  offering  without  blood  ;  and  all  his  after-conduct 
was  but  the  legitimate  result  of  his  false  worship. 

"And  Cain  talked  with  his  brother  Abel:  and  it 
came  to  pass,  when  they  were  in  the  field,  that  Cain 
rose  up  against  Abel  his  brother,  and  slew  him." 
Thus  has  it  ever  been, — the  Cains  have  persecuted 
and  murdered  the  Abels.  At  all  times,  man  and  his 
religion  are  the  same,  faith  and  its  religion  are  the 
same ;  and  wherever  they  have  met  there  has  been 
conflict. 

However,  it  is  well  to  see  that  Cain's  act  of  mur- 
der was  the  true  consequence — the  proper  fruit — of 
his  false  worship.  His  foundation  was  bad,  and  the 
superstructure  erected  thereon  was  also  bad.  Nor 
did  he  stop  at  the  act  of  murder ;  but  having  heard 
the  judgment  of  God  thereon,  despairing  of  forgive- 
ness through  ignorance  of  God,  he  went  forth  from 
His  blessed  presence  and  built  a  city,  and  had  in  his 
family  the  cultivators  of  the  useful  and  ornamental 
sciences — agriculturists,  musicians,  and  workers  in 


CHAPTERS    IV  &  V.  75 

metals.  Through  ignorance  of  the  divine  character, 
he  pronounced  his  sin  too  great  to  be  pardoned.* 
It  was  not  that  he  really  knew  his  sin,  but  that  he 
knew  not  God.  He  fully  exhibited  the  terrible  fruit 
of  the  fall  in  the  very  thought  of  God  to  which  he 
gave  utterance.  He  did  not  want  pardon,  because 
he  did  not  want  God.  He  had  no  true  sense  of  his 
own  condition,  no  aspirations  after  God,  no  intelli- 
gence as  to  the  ground  of  a  sinner's  approach  to 
God.  He  was  radically  corrupt  —  fundamentally 
wrong;  and  all  he  wanted  was  to  get  out  of  the 
presence  of  God,  and  lose  himself  in  the  world  and 
its  pursuits.  He  thought  he  could  live  very  well 
without  God,  and  he  therefore  set  about  decorating 
the  world  as  well  as  he  could,  for  the  purpose  of 
making  it  a  respectable  place,  and  himself  a  respect- 
able man  therein,  though  in  God's  view  it  was  under 
the  curse,  and  he  was  a  fugitive  and  a  vagabond. 

Such  was  "the  way  of  Cain,"  in  which  way  mill- 
ions are,  at  this  moment,  rushing  on.  Such  persons 
are  not,  by  any  means,  divested  of  the  religious 
element  in  their  character.  They  would  like  to  offer 
something,  to  God  —  to  do  something  for  Him.  They 
deem  it  right  to  present  to  Him  the  results  of  their 
own  toil.  They  are  ignorant  of  themselves,  ignorant 
of  God  ;  but  with  all  this  there  is  the  diligent  effort 
to  improve  the  world,  to  make  life  agreeable  in  vari- 
ous ways,  to  deck  the  scene  with  the  fairest  colors. 


*The  word  used  by  Cain  is  ^"1^3^  which  occurs  in  Psalm 
xxxii.  1,—  "whose  transgression  is  forgiven."  The  LXX  renders 
it  by  otcpzQi'fvcti  —  "to  be  remitted." 


76  GENESIS. 

God's  remedy  to  cleanse  is  rejected,  and  man's 
effort  to  improve  is  put  in  its  place.  This  is  "the 
way  of  Cain."  (Jude  11.) 

And,  my  reader,  you  have  only  to  look  around 
you  to  see  how  this  ' '  way ' '  prevails  at  the  present 
moment.  Though  the  world  is  stained  with  the 
blood  of  "a  greater  than"  Abel,  even  with  the 
blood  of  Christ,  yet  see  what  an  agreeable  place 
man  seeks  to  make  of  it !  As  in  Cain's  day,  the 
grateful  sounds  of  "the  harp  and  organ,"  no  doubt, 
completely  drowned,  to  man's  ear,  the  cry  of  Abel's 
blood ;  so  now,  man's  ear  is  filled  with  other  sounds 
than  those  which  issue  from  Calvary,  and  his  eye 
filled  with  other  objects  than  a  crucified  Christ. 
The  resources  of  his  genius,  too,  are  put  forth  to 
render  this  world  a  hot-house,  in  which  are  pro- 
duced, in  their  rarest  form,  all  the  fruits  for  which 
nature  so  eagerly  longs.  And  not  merely  are  the 
real  wants  of  man,  as  a  creature,  supplied,  but  the 
inventive  genius  of  the  human  mind  has  been  set  to 
work  for  the  purpose  of  devising  things  which,  the 
moment  the  eye  sees,  the  heart  desires,  and  not  only 
desires,  but  imagines  that  life  would  be  intolerable 
without  them.  Thus,  for  instance,  some  years  ago, 
people  were  content  to  devote  three  or  four  days  to 
the  accomplishing  of  a  journey  of  one  hundred 
miles ;  but  now  they  can  accomplish  it  in  three  or 
four  hours  ;  and  not  only  so,  but  they  will  complain 
sadly  if  they  happen  to  be  five  or  ten  minutes  late. 
In  fact,  man  must  be  saved  the  trouble  of  living. 
He  must  travel  without  fatigue,  he  must  hear  news 


CHAPTERS    IV  &  V.  77 

without  having  to  exercise  patience  for  it.  He  will 
lay  iron  rails  across  the  earth,  and  electric  wires  be- 
neath the  sea,  as  if  to  anticipate,  in  his  own  way, 
that  bright  and  blissful  age,  when  ''there  will  be  no 
more  sea."  * 

In  addition  to  all  this,  there  is  abundance  of  re- 
ligion, so  called ;  but,  alas  !  charity  itself  is  com- 
pelled to  harbor  the  apprehension  that  very  much  of 
what  passes  for  religion  is  but  a  screw  in  the  vast 
machine  which  has  been  constructed  for  man's  con- 
venience and  man's  exaltation.  Man  would  not  be 
without  religion :  it  would  not  be  respectable  ;  and 
therefore  he  is  content  to  devote  one-seventh  of  his 
time  to  religion,  or,  as  he  thinks  and  professes,  to 
his  eternal  interests,  and  then  he  has  six-sevenths  to 
devote  to  his  temporal  interests ;  but  whether  he 
works  for  time  or  eternity,  it  is  for  himself,  in  reality. 
Such  is  "the  way  of  Cain."  Let  my  reader  ponder 
it  well.  Let  him  see  where  this  way  begins,  whither 
it  tends,  and  where  it  terminates. 

How  different  the  way  of  the  man  of  faith  !  Abel 
felt  and  owned  the  curse ;  he  saw  the  stain  of  sin, 
and,  in  the  holy  energy  of  faith,  offered  that  which 
met  it,  and  met  it  thoroughly — met  it  divinely.  He 
sought  and  found  a  refuge  in  God  Himself;  and  in- 
stead of  building  a  city  on  the  earth,  he  found  but 
a  grave  in  its  bosom.  The  earth,  which  on  its  sur- 


*  True,  the  Lord  is  using  all  those  things  for  the  furtherance  of 
His  own  gracious  emits;  and  the  Lord's  servant  can  freely  use 
them  also ;  but  this  does  not  hinder  our  seeing  the  spirit  Avhich 
originates  and  characterizes  them. 


78  GENESIS. 

face  displayed  the  genius  and  energy  of  Cain  and 
his  family,  was  staine^  underneath  with  the  blood  of 
a  righteous  man.  Let  the  man  of  the  world  remem- 
ber this ;  let  the  man  of  God  remember  it ;  let  the 
worldly-minded  Christian  remember  it.  The  earth 
which  we  tread  upon  is  stained  by  the  blood  of  the 
Son  of  God.  The  very  blood  which  justifies  the 
Church  condemns  the  world.  The  dark  shadow  of 
the  cross  of  Jesus  may  be  seen  by  the  eye  of  faith, 
looming  over  all  the  glitter  and  glare  of  this  evanes- 
cent world.  "The  fashion  of  this  world  passeth 
away-"  It  will  soon  all  be  over,  so  far  as  the  pres- 
ent scene  is  concerned.  "The  way  of  Cain"  will 
be  followed  by  "the  error  of  Balaam,"  in  its  con- 
summated form ;  and  then  will  come  "the  gainsay- 
ing of  Core";  and  what  then?  "The  pit"  will 
open  its  mouth  to  receive  the  wicked,  and  close  it 
again  to  shut  them  up  in  "blackness  of  darkness 
forever."  (Jude  13.) 

In  full  confirmation  of  the  foregoing  lines,  we 
may  run  the  eye  over  the  contents  of  chapter  v,  and 
find  therein  the  humiliating  record  of  man's  weak- 
ness, and  subjection  to  the  rule  of  death.  He  might 
live  for  hundreds  of  years,  and  "beget  sons  and 
daughters,  but  at  last  it  must  be  recorded  that  "7te 
died."  "Death  reigned  from  Adam  to  Moses." 
And  again,  "It  is  appointed  unto  men  once  to  die." 
Man  cannot  get  over  this.  He  cannot,  by  steam,  or 
electricity,  or  anything  else  within  the  range  of  his 
genius,  disarm  death  of  its  terrible  sting.  He  can- 
not, by  his  energy,  set  aside  the  sentence  of  death, 


CHAPTERS    IV  &  V.  79 

although  he  may  produce  the  comforts  and  luxuries 
of  life. 

But  whence  came  this  strange  and  dreaded  thing 
— death  ?  St.  Paul  gives  us  the  answer, — "By  one 
man  sin  entered  into  the  world,  and  death  by  sin." 
(Rom.  v.  12.)  Here  we  have  the  origin  of  death. 
It  came  by  sin.  Sin  snapped  asunder  the  link  which 
bound  the  creature  to  the  living  God ;  and,  that  be- 
ing done,  he  was  handed  over  to  the  dominion  of 
death,  which  dominion  he  had  no  power  whatever  to 
shake  off.  And  this,  be  it  observed,  is  one  of  the 
many  proofs  of  the  fact  of  man's  total  inability  to 
meet  God.  There  can  be  no  fellowship  between 
God  and  man,  save  in  the  power  of  life ;  but  man 
is  under  the  power  of  death;  hence,  on  natural 
grounds,  there  can  be  no  fellowship.  Life  can  have 
no  fellowship  with  death,  no  more  than  light  with 
darkness,  or  holiness  with  sin.  Man  must  meet  God 
on  an  entirely  new  ground,  and  on  a  new  principle, 
even  faith ;  and  this  faith  enables  him  to  recognize 
his  own  position  as  "sold  under  sin,"  and  therefore 
subject  to  death ;  while,  at  the  same  time,  it  enables 
him  to  apprehend  God's  character,  as  the  dispenser 
of  a  new  life — life  beyond  the  power  of  death — a 
life  which  can  never  be  touched  by  the  enemy,  nor 
forfeited  by  us. 

This  it  is  which  marks  the  security  of  the  believ- 
er's life.  Christ  is  his  life— a  risen,  glorified  Christ 
— a  Christ  victorious  over  everything  that  could  be 
against  us.  Adam's  life  was  founded  upon  his  own 
obedience ;  and,  therefore,  when  he  disobeyed,  life: 


80  GENESIS. 

was  forfeited.  But  Christ,  having  life  in  Himself, 
came  down  into  this  world,  and  fully  met  all  the 
circumstances  of  man's  sin,  in  every  possible  form ; 
and,  by  submitting  to  death,  destroyed  him  who  had 
the  power  thereof,  and,  in  resurrection,  becomes  the 
life  and  righteousness  of  all  who  believe  in  His  most 
excellent  name. 

Now,  it  is  impossible  that  Satan  can  touch  this 
life,  either  in  its  source,  its  channel,  its  power,  its 
sphere,  or  its  duration.  God  is  its  source  ;  a  risen 
Christ,  its  channel;  the  Holy  Ghost,  its  power; 
heaven,  its  sphere ;  and  eternity,  its  duration. 
Hence,  therefore,  as  might  be  expected,  to  one 
possessing  this  wondrous  life,  the  whole  scene  is 
changed ;  and  while,  in  one  sense,  it  must  be  said, 
"in  the  midst  of  life  we  are  in  death,"  yet,  in 
another  sense,  it  can  be  said,  "in  the  midst  of  death 
we  are  in  life."  There  is  no  death  in  the  sphere 
into  which  a  risen  Christ  introduces  His  people. 
How  could  there  be  ?  Has  not  He  abolished  it  ?  It 
cannot  be  an  abolished  and  an  existing  thing  at  the 
same  time  and  to  the  same  people  ;  but  God's  Word 
tells  us  it  is  abolished.  Christ  emptied  the  scene  of 
death,  and  filled  it  with  life  ;  and  therefore  it  is  not 
death,  but  glory  that  lies  before  the  believer.  Death 
is  behind  him,  and  behind  him  forever.  As  to  the 
future,  it  is  all  glory — cloudless  glory.  True,  it  may 
be  his  lot  to  "fall  asleep" — to  "sleep  in  Jesus" 
but  that  is  not  death,  but  "life  in  earnest."  The 
mere  matter  of  departing  to  be  with  Christ  cannot 
alter  the  specific  hope  of  the  believer,  which  is,  to 


CHAPTERS    IV   &  V.  81 

meet  Christ  in  the  air,  to  be  with  Him  and  like  Him 
forever. 

Of  this  we  have  a  very  beautiful  exemplification 
in  Enoch,  who  forms  the  only  exception  to  the  rule 
of  chapter  v.  The  rule  is,  "he  died"  ;  the  excep- 
tion is,  "he  should  not  see  death."  uBy  faith 
Enoch  was  translated  that  he  should  not  see  death ; 
and  was  not  found,  because  God  had  translated  him  ; 
for  before  his  translation  he  had  this  testimony,  that 
he  pleased  God."  (Heb.  xi.  5.)  Enoch  was  "the 
seventh  from  Adam"  ;  and  it  is  deeply  interesting 
to  find  that  death  Avas  not  suffered  to  triumph  over 
"the  seventh"  ;  but  that,  in  his  case,  God  inter- 
fered, and  made  him  a  trophy  of  His  own  glorious 
victory  over  all  the  power  of  death.  The  heart  re- 
joices, after  reading,  six  times,  the  sad  record,  "he 
died,"  to  find  that  the  seventh  did  not  die;  and 
when  we  ask,  How  wras  this?  the  answer  is,  "By 
faith."  Enoch  lived  in  the  faith  of  his  translation, 
and  walked  with  God  three  hundred  years.  This 
separated  him,  practically,  from  all  around.  To 
walk  with  God  must  necessarily  put  one  outside  the 
sphere  of  this  world's  thoughts.  Enoch  realized 
this ;  for,  in  his  da}^,  the  spirit  of  the  world  was 
manifested ;  and  then,  too,  as  now,  it  was  opposed 
to  all  that  was  of  God.  The  man  of  faith  felt  he 
had  naught  to  do  with  the  world,  save  to  be  a  patient 
witness  therein  of  the  grace  of  God,  and  of  coming 
judgment.  The  sons  of  Cain  might  spend  their 
energies  in  the  vain  attempt  to  improve  a  cursed 
world,  but  Enoch  found  a  better  world,  and  lived  in 


82  GENESIS. 

the  power  of  it.*  His  faith  was  not  given  him  to 
improve  the  world,  but  to  walk  with  God. 

And,  oh  !  how  much  is  involved  in  these  three 
words — ' '  walked  with  God ' ' !  What  separation  and 
self-denial  !  what  holiness  and  moral  purity !  what 
grace  and  gentleness  !  what  humility  and  tender- 
ness !  and  yet  what  zeal  and  energy  !  What  pa- 
tience and  long-suffering  !  and  yet  what  faithfulness 
and  uncompromising  decision  !  To  walk  with  God 
comprehends  everything  within  the  range  of  the 
divine  life,  whether  active  or  passive.  It  involves 
the  knowledge  of  God's  character  as  He  has  revealed 
it.  It  involves,  too,  the  intelligence  of  the  relation- 
ship in  which  we  stand  to  Him.  It  is  not  a  mere 
living  by  rules  and  regulations ;  nor  laying  down 
plans  of  action ;  nor  in  resolutions  to  go  hither  and 
thither,  to  do  this  or  that.  To  walk  with  God  is  far 
more  than  any  or  all  of  these  things.  Moreover,  it 
will  sometimes  carry  us  right  athwart  the  thoughts 
of  men,  and  even  of  our  brethren,  if  they  are  not 
themselves  walking  with  God.  It  may  sometimes 
bring  against  us  the  charge  of  doing  too  much ;  at 
other  times,  of  doing  too  little ;  but  the  faith  that 
enables  one  to  "walk  with  God,"  enables  him  also 
to  attach  the  proper  value  to  the  thoughts  of  man. 

Thus  we  have,  in  Abel  and  Enoch,  most  valuable 
instruction  as  to  the  sacrifice  on  which  faith  rests, 
and  as  to  the  prospect  which  hope  now  anticipates ; 

*  It  is  very  evident  that  Enoch  knew  nothing  whatever  about 
the  mode  of  "making  the  best  of  both  worlds."  To  him  there 
was  but  one  world.  Thus  it  should  be  with  us. 


CHAPTEHS    IV   &  V.  83 

while,  at  the  same  time,  the  "walk  with  God"  takes 
in  all  the  details  of  actual  life  which  lie  between 
those  two  points.  ' '  The  Lord  will  give  grace  and 
glory"  ;  and  between  the  grace  that  has  been,  and 
the  glory  that  is  to  be,  revealed,  theue  is  the  happy 
assurance  that  "no  good  thing  will  He  withhold 
from  them  that  walk  uprightly."  (Psalm  Ixxxiv.  11.) 

It  has  been  remarked  that  "the  cross  and  the 
coming  of  the  Lord  form  the  termini  of  the  Church's 
existence,"  and  these  termini  are  prefigured  in  the 
sacrifice  of  Abel  and  the  translation  of  Enoch.  The 
Church  knows  her  entire  justification  through  the 
death  and  resurrection  of  Christ,  and  she  waits  for 
the  day  when  He  shall  come  and  receive  her  to 
Himself.  She,  "through  the  Spirit,  waits  for  the 
hope  of  righteousness  by  faith."  (Gal.  v.  5.)  She 
does  not  wait  for  righteousness,  inasmuch  as  she, 
by  grace,  has  that  already;  but  she  waits  for  the 
hope  which  properly  belongs  to  the  condition  into 
which  she  has  been  introduced. 

My  reader  should  seek  to  be  clear  as  to  this. 
Some  expositors  of  prophetic  truth,  from  not  seeing 
the  Church's  specific  place,  portion  and  hope,  have 
made  sad  mistakes.  They  have,  in  effect,  cast  so 
many  dark  clouds  and  thick  mists  around  "the 
bright  and  morning  star,"  which  is  the  proper  hope 
of  the  Church,  that  many  saints,  at  the  present 
moment,  seem  unable  to  rise  above  the  hope  of  the 
God-fearing  remnant  of  Israel,  which  is,  to  see 
"the  Sun  of  Righteousness  arise  with  healing  in  His 
wings."  (Mai.  iv.)  Nor  is  this  all.  Very  many 


84  GENESIS. 

have  been  deprived  of  the  moral  power  of  the  hope 
of  Christ's  appearing,  by  being  taught  to  look  for 
various  events  and  circumstances  previous  to  the 
moment  of  His  manifestation  to  the  Church.  The 
restoration  of  the  Jews,  the  development  of  Nebu- 
chadnezzar's image,  the  revelation  of  the  man  of 
sin, — all  these  things,  it  is  maintained,  must  take 
place  ere  Christ  comes.  That  this  is  not  true,  might 
be  proved  from  numerous  passages  of  New  Testa- 
ment scripture,  were  this  the  fitting  place  to  adduce 
them. 

The  Church,  like  Enoch,  will  be  taken  away  from 
the  evil  around  and  the  evil  to  come.  Enoch  was 
not  left  to  see  the  world's  evil  rise  to  a  head,  and 
the  judgment  of  God  poured  forth  upon  it.  He  saw 
not  "the  fountains  of  the  great  deep  broken  up," 
nor  "the  windows  of  heaven  opened."  He  was 
taken  away  before  any  of  these  things  occurred; 
and  he  stands  before  the  eye  of  faith  as  a  beautiful 
figure  of  those  "who  shall  not  all  sleep,  but  shall  all 
be  changed,  in  a  moment,  in  the  twinkling  of  an 
eye."  (1  Cor.  xv.  51,  52.)  Translation,  not  death, 
was  the  hope  of  Enoch;  and  as  to  the  Church's 
hope,  it  is  thus  briefly  expressed  by  the  apostle  : 
"To  wait  for  His  Son  from  heaven."  (1  Thess.  1. 
10.)  This,  the  simplest  and  most  unlettered  Chris- 
tian can  understand  and  enjoy.  Its  power,  too,  he 
can,  in  some  measure,  experience  and  manifest. 
He  may  not  be  able  to  study  prophecy  very  deeply, 
but  he  can,  blessed  be  God,  taste  the  blessedness, 
the  reality,  the  comfort,  the*  power,  the  elevating 


CHAPTERS    VI IX.  85 

and  separating  virtue,  of  that  celestial  hope  which 
properly  belongs  to  him  as  a  member  of  that  heav- 
enly bod}- — the  Church ;  which  hope  is  not  merely 
to  see  "the  Sun  of  Righteousness,"  how  blessed 
soever  that  may  be  in  its  place,  but  to  see  "the 
bright  and  morning  star."  (Rev.  ii.  28.)  And  as, 
in  the  natural  world,  the  morning  star  is  seen,  by 
those  who  watch  for  it,  before  the  sun  rises,  so 
Christ,  as  the  morning  star,  will  be  seen  by  the 
Church  before  the  remnant  of  Israel  can  behold  the 
beams  of  the  Sun. 


CHAPTERS  VI— IX. 

TTTE  have  now  arrived  at  a  deeply-important  and 
»  »  strongly-marked  division  of  our  book.  Enoch 
has  passed  off  the  scene.  His  walk,  as  a  stranger 
on  earth,  has  terminated  in  his  translation  to  heaven. 
He  was  taken  away  before  human  evil  had  risen  to  a 
head,  and,  therefore,  before  the  divine  judgment 
had  been  poured  out.  How  little  influence  his 
course  and  translation  had  upon  the  world,  is  mani- 
fest from  the  first  two  verses  of  chapter^vi.  "And 
it  came  to  pass,  when  men  began  to  multiply  on  the 
face  of  the  earth,  and  daughters  were  born  unto 
them,  that  the  sons  of  God  saw  the  daughters  of 
men  that  they  were  fair  ;  and  they  took  them  wives 
of  all  which  they  chose." 


86  GENESIS. 

The  mingling  of  that  which  is  of  God  with  that 
which  is  of  man,  is  a  special  form  of  evil,  and  a 
very  effectual  engine,  in  Satan's  hand,  for  marring 
the  testimony  of  Christ  on  the  earth.  This  mingling 
may  frequently  wear  the  appearance  of  something 
very  desirable  ;  it  may  often  look  like  a  wider  pro- 
mulgation of  that  which  is  of  God — a  fuller  and  a 
more  vigorous  outgoing  of  a  divine  influence — a 
something  to  be  rejoiced  in  rather  than  to  be  de- 
plored: but  our  judgment  as  to  this  will  depend 
entirely  upon  the  point  of  view  from  which  we  con- 
template it.  If  we  look  at  it  in  the  light  of  God's 
presence,  we  cannot  possibly  imagine  that  an  ad- 
vantage is  gained  when  the  people  of  God  mingle 
themselves  with  the  children  of  this  world,  or  when 
the  truth  of  God  is  corrupted  by  human  admixture. 
Such  is  not  the  divine  method  of  promulgating  truth, 
or  of  advancing  the  interests  of  those  who  ought  to 
occupy  the  place  of  witnesses  for  Him  on  the  earth. 
Separation  from  all  evil  is  God's  principle  ;  and  this 
principle  can  never  be  infringed  without  serious 
damage  to  the  truth. 

In  the  narrative  now  before  us,  we  see  that  the 
union  of  the  sons  of  God  with  the  daughters  of  men 
led  to  the  most  disastrous  consequences.  True,  the 
fruit  of  that  union  seemed  exceedingly  fair,  in  man's 
judgment,  as  we  read,  "The  same  became  mighty 
men,  which  were  of  old,  men  of  renown";  yet 
God's  judgment  was  quite  different.  He  seeth  not 
as  man  seeth.  His  thoughts  are  not  as  ours.  "God 
saw  that  the  wickedness  of  man  was  great  in  the/ 


CHAPTERS   VI IX.  87 

earth,  and  that  every  imagination  of  the  thoughts  of 
his  heart  was  only  evil  continually."  Such  was 
man's  condition  before  God — "evil  only" — "evil 
continually."  So  much  for  the  mingling  of  the  holy 
with  the  profane.  Thus  it  must  ever  be.  If  the 
holy  seed  will  not  maintain  its  purity,  all  must  be 
forfeited,  as  regards  testimony  on  the  earth.  Satan's 
first  effort  was,  to  frustrate  God's  purpose,  by  put- 
ting the  holy  seed  to  death ;  and  when  that  failed, 
he  sought  to  gain  his  end  by  corrupting  it. 

Now,  it  is  of  the  deepest  moment  that  my  reader 
should  clearly  understand  the  aim,  the  character, 
and  the  result  of  this  union  between  ' '  the  sons  of 
God"  and  "the  daughters  of  men."  There  is 
great  danger,  at  the  present  day,  of  compromising 
truth  for  the  sake  of  union.  This  should  be  care- 
fully guarded  against.  There  can  be  no  true  union 
attained  at  the  expense  of  truth.  The  true  Chris- 
tian's motto  should  ever  be,  "Maintain  truth  at  all 
cost;  if  union  can  be  promoted  in  this  way,  so 
much  the  better,  but  maintain  the  truth."  The 
principle  of  expediency,  on  the  contrary,  may  be 
thus  enunciated:  "Promote  union  at  all  cost;  if 
truth  can  be  maintained  as  well,  so  much  the  better, 
but  promote  union."  This  latter  principle  can  only 
be  carried  out  at  the  expense  of  all  that  is  divine  in 
the  way  of  testimony.*  There  can,  evidently,  be 


*  We  should  ever  bear  in  mind,  that  "the  wisdom  which  is  from 
above  is  first  pure,  then  peaceable."  (James  iii.  17.)  The  wisdom 
which  is  from  beneath  would  put  "peaceable"  iirst,  and  there- 
fore it  can  never  be  pure. 

7 


88  GENESIS. 

no  true  testimony  where  truth  is  forfeited ;  and 
hence,  in  the  ease  of  the  antidiluvian  world,  we  see 
that  the  unhallowed  union  between  the  holy  and  the 
profane — between  that  which  was  divine  and  that 
which  was  human,  only  had  the  effect  of  bringing 
the  evil  to  a  head,  and  then  God's  judgment  was 
poured  out. 

"The  Lord  said,  'I  will  destroy  man.'  "  Nothing 
less  would  do.  There  must  be  the  entire  destruction 
of  that  which  had  corrupted  God's  way  on  the 
earth.  "The  mighty  men,  and  men  of  renown," 
must  all  be  swept  away,  without  distinction.  "All 
flesh"  must  be  set  aside,  as  utterly  unfit  for  God. 
"The  end  of  all  flesh  is  come  before  Me."  It  was 
not  merely  the  end  of  some  flesh ;  no,  it  was  all 
corrupt  in  the  sight  of  Jehovah — all  irrecoverably 
bad.  It  had  been  tried,  and  found  wanting;  and 
the  Lord  announces  His  remedy  to  Noah  in  these 
words, — "Make  thee  an  ark  of  gopher  wood." 

Thus  was  Noah  put  in  possession  of  God's  thoughts 
about  the  scene  around  him.  The  effect  of  the  word 
of  God  was,  to  lay  bare  the  roots  of  all  that  which 
man's  eye  might  rest  upon  with  complacency  and 
pride.  The  human  heart  might  swell  with  pride, 
and  the  bosom  heave  with  emotion,  as  the  eye  ran 
down  along  the  brilliant  ranks  of  men  of  art,  men 
of  skill,  "men  of  might,"  and  "men  of  renown." 
The  sound  of  the  harp  and  the  organ  might  send  a 
thrill  through  the  whole  soul,  while,  at  the  same 
time,  the  ground  was  cultivated,  and  man's  necessi- 
ties were  provided  for  in  such  a  way  as  to  contradict 


CHAPTERS    VI IX.  89 

every  thought  in  reference  to  approaching  judgment. 
But,  oh!  those  solemn  words,  "7  will  destroy"! 
What  a  heavy  gloom  they  would  necessarily  cast 
over  the  glittering  scene  !  Could  not  man's  genius 
invent  some  way  of  escape?  Could  not  "the  mighty 
man  deliver  himself  by  his  much  strength"  ?  Alas ! 
no.  There  was  one  way  of  escape,  but  it  was  re- 
vealed to  faith,  not  to  sight,  not  to  reason,  not  to 
imagination. 

' '  By  faith  Noah,  being  warned  of  God  of  things 
not  seen  as  yet,  moved  with  fear  \_svXa prjQsts],  pre- 
pared an  ark  to  the  saving  of  his  house ;  by  the 
which  he  condemned  the  world,  and  became  heir  of 
the  righteousness  which  is  by  faith."  (Heb.  xi.  7.) 
The  Word  of  God  brings  His  light  to  shine  upon  all 
that  by  which  man's  heart  is  deceived.  It  removes, 
completely,  the  gilding  with  which  the  serpent  covers 
a  vain,  deceitful,  passing  world,  over  which  hangs 
the  sword  of  divine  judgment.  But  it  is  only 
"faith"  that  will  be  "warned  of  God,"  when  the 
things  of  which  He  speaks  are  "not  seen  as  yet." 
Nature  is  governed  by  what  it  sees, — it  is  governed 
by  its  senses.  Faith  is  governed  by  the  pure  Word 
of  God  ;  (inestimable  treasure  in  this  dark  world  !) 
this  gives  stability,  let  outward  appearances  be  what 
they  may.  When  God  spoke  to  Noah  of  judgment 
impending,  there  was  no  sign  of  it, — it  was  "not 
seen  as  yet"  ;  but  the  Word  of  God  made  it  a 
present  reality  to  the  heart  that  was  enabled  to 
mix  that  Word  with  faith.  Faith  does  not  wait 
to  see  a  thing  ere  it  believes,  for  "faith  cometh 


90  GENESTS. 

by  hearing,  and  hearing  by  the  Word  of  God." 
All  that  the  man  of  faith  needs,  is  to  know  that 
God  has  spoken ;  this  imparts  perfect  certainty  to 
his  soul.  "Thus  saith  the  Lord,"  settles  everything. 
A  single  line  of  sacred  Scripture  is  an  abundant 
answer  to  all  the  reasonings  and  all  the  imaginations 
of  the  human  mind ;  and  when  one  has  the  Word  of 
God  as  the  basis  of  his  convictions,  he  may  calmly 
stand  against  the  full  tide  of  human  opinion  and 
prejudice.  It  was  the  Word  of  God  which  sustained 
the  heart  of  Noah  during  his  long  course  of  service  ; 
and  the  same  Word  has  sustained  the  millions  of 
God's  saints  from  that  day  to  this,  in  the  face  of 
the  world's  contradiction.  Hence,  we  cannot  set  too 
high  a  value  upon  the  Word  of  God.  Without  it, 
all  is  dark  uncertainty;  with  it,  all  is  light  and 
peace.  Where  it  shines,  it  marks  out  for  the  man  of 
God  a  sure  and  a  blessed  path ;  where  it  shines  not, 
one  is  left  to  wander  amid  the  bewildering  mazes  of 
human  tradition.  How  could  Noah  have  "preached 
righteousness,"  for  one  hundred  and  twenty  years, 
if  he  had  not  had  the  Word  of  God  as  the  ground  of 
his  preaching  ?  How  could  he  have  withstood  the 
scoffs  and  sneers  of  an  infidel  world  ?  How  could 
he  have  persevered  in  testifying  of  "judgment  to 
come,"  when  not  a  cloud  appeared  on  the  world's 
horizon  ?  Impossible.  The  Word  of  God  was  the 
ground  on  which  he  stood,  and  "the  Spirit  of 
Christ"  enabled  him  to  occupy,  with  holy  decision, 
that  elevated  and  immovable  ground. 

And  now,  my  beloved  Christian  reader,  what  else 


CHAPTERS    VI IX.  91 

have  we  wherewith  to  stand,  in  service  for  Christ,  in 
an  evil  day  like  the  present  ?  Surely,  nothing ;  nor 
do  we  want  aught  else.  The  Word  of  God,  and  the 
Holy  Ghost,  by  whom  alone  that  Word  can  be  un- 
derstood, applied,  or  used,  are  all  we  want  to  equip 
us  perfectly — to  furnish  us  thoroughly  "to  all  good 
works,"  under  whatever  head  those  works  may  range 
themselves.  (2  Tim.  iii.  16,  17.)  What  rest  for  the 
heart  !  What  relief  from  all  Satan's  imager}^,  and 
man's  imaginations  !  God's  pure,  incorruptible, 
eternal  Word  !  May  our  hearts  adore  Him  for  the 
inestimable  treasure  !  "Every  imagination  of  the 
thoughts  of  man's  heart  was  only  evil  continually"  ; 
but  God's  Word  was  the  simple  resting-place  of 
Noah's  heart. 

"God  said  unto  Noah,  'The  end  of  all  flesh  is 
come  before  Me.  .  .  .  Make  thee  an  ark  of  gopher 
wood.' '  Here  was  man's  ruin  and  God's  remedy. 
Man  had  been  allowed  to  pursue  his  career  to  the 
utmost  limit,  to  bring  his  principles  and  his  wa}7s 
to  maturity.  The  leaven  had  worked  and  filled  the 
mass, — the  evil  had  reached  its  climax.  "All  flesh" 
had  become  so  bad  that  it  could  not  be  worse; 
wherefore  nothing  remained  but  for  God  to  destroy 
it  totally ;  and,  at  the  same  time,  to  save  all  those 
who  should  be  found,  according  to  His  eternal  coun- 
sels, linked  with  "the  eighth  person" — the  only 
righteous  man  then  existing.  This  brings  out  the 
doctrine  of  the  cross  in  a  very  vivid  manner.  There 
we  find,  at  once,  God's  judgment  of  nature  with  all 
its  evil ;  and,  at  the  same  time,  the  revelation  of  His 


92  GENESIS. 

saving  grace,  in  all  its  fullness,  and  in  all  its  perfect 
adaptation  to  those  who  have  really  reached  the 
lowest  point  of  their  moral  condition,  us  judged  by 
Himself.  "The  day-spring  from  on  high  hath  visited 
us."  (Luke  i.  78.)  Where?  Just  where  ive  are,  as 
sinners.  God  has  come  down  to  the  very  deepest 
depths  of  our  ruin.  There  is  not  a  point  in  all  the 
sinner's  state  to  which  the  light  of  that  blessed  day- 
spring  has  not  penetrated ;  but  if  it  has  thus  pene- 
trated, it  must,  by  virtue  of  what  it  is,  reveal  our 
true  character.  The  light  must  judge  everything 
contrary  to  itself;  but,  while  it  does  so,  it  also 
4 '  gives  the  knowledge  of  salvation  through  the  re- 
mission of  sins."  The  cross,  while  it  reveals  God's 
judgment  upon  "all  flesh,"  reveals  His  salvation  for 
the  lost  and  guilty  sinner.  Sin  is  perfectly  judged — 
the  sinner  perfectly  saved — God  perfectly  revealed, 
and  perfectly  glorified,  in  the  cross. 

If  my  reader  will  turn,  for  a  moment,  to  the  first 
epistle  of  Peter,  he  will  find  much  light  thrown  upon 
this  entire  subject.  At  the  third  chapter,  verse  18, 
we  read,  "For  Christ  also  hath  once  suffered  for 
sins,  the  just  for  the  unjust,  that  He  might  bring  us 
to  God,  being  put  to  death  in  the  flesh,  but  quick- 
ened by  the  Spirit :  by  which  [Spirit]  He  went  and 
preached  [through  Noah]  to  the  spirits  [now]  in 
prison ;  which  once  were  disobedient,  when  the 
long-suffering  of  God  waited  in  the  days  of  Noah, 
while  the  ark  was  being  prepared,  wherein  few,  that 
is,  eight  souls,  were  saved  through  water  [Sz  vSaro?"]  ; 
to  which  the  antitype  \_avi -n -vTtor]  baptism  doth  also 


CHAPTERS    VI IX.  93 

now  save  us,  not  the  putting  away  of  the  filth  of  the 
flesh,  [as  by  water,]*  but  the  answer  of  a  good 
conscience  toward  God,  by  the  resurrection  of  Jesus 
Christ,  who,  having  gone  into  heaven,  is  at  the  right 
hand  of  God,  angels  and  authorities  and  powers 
being  made  subject  to  Him." 

This  is  a  most  important  passage.  It  sets  the 
doctrine  of  the  ark  and  its  connection  with  the  death 
of  Christ  very  distinctly  before  us.  As  in  the  del- 
uge, so  in  the  death  of  Christ,  all  the  billows  and 
waves  of  divine  judgment  passed  over  that  which, 
in  itself,  was  without  sin.  The  creation  was  buried 
beneath  the  flood  of  Jehovah's  righteous  wrath  ;  and 
the  Spirit  of  Christ  exclaims,  "All  Thy  billows  and 
Thy  waves  have  gone  over  Me."  (Psalm  xlii.  7.) 
Here  is  a  profound  truth  for  the  heart  and  con- 

*It  is  impossible  to  over- estimate  the  wisdom  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  as  seen  in  the  way  in  which  He  treats  the  ordinance  of 
baptism,  in  the  above  remarkable  passage.  We  know  the  evil  use 
which  has  been  made  of  baptism,— we  know  the  false  place  it  has 
gotten  in  the  thoughts  of  many, — AVC  know  how  that  the  efficacy, 
which  belongs  only  to  the  blood  of  Christ,  has  been  attributed  to 
the  water  of  baptism, — we  know  how  the  regenerating  grace  of  the 
Holy  Ghost  has  been  transferred  to  water-baptism;  and,  with  the 
knowledge  of  all  this,  we  cannot  but  be  struck  with  the  way  in 
which  the  Spirit  of  God  guards  the  subject,  by  stating. that  it  is  not 
the  mere  washing  away  of  the  filth  of  the  flesh,  as  by  water,  "but 
the  answer  of  a  good  conscience  toward  God,"  which  "answer" 
we  get,  not  by  baptism,  how  important  soever  it  may  be  as  an 
ordinance  of  the  kingdom,  but  "by  the  resurrection  of  Jesus 
Christ,"  "who  was  delivei-ed  for  our  ofl'ences,  and  raised  again  for 
our  justification." 

Baptism,  I  need  hardly  say,  as  an  ordinance  of  divine  institution, 
and  in  its  divinely-appointed  place,  is  most  important  and  deeply 
significant;  but  when  we  find  men,  in  one  way  or  another,  putting 
the  figure  in  place  of  the  substance,  we  are  bound  to  expose  the 
•  work  of  Satan  by  the  light  of  the  Word  of  God. 


94  .  GENESIS. 

science  of  a  believer.  "All  God's  billows  and 
waves"  passed  over  the  spotless  Person  of  the  Lord 
Jesus,  when  He  hung  upon  the  cross ;  and,  as  a 
most  blessed  consequence,  not  one  of  them  remains 
to  pass  over  the  person  of  the  believer.  At  Calvary, 
we  see,  in  good  truth,  "the  fountains  of  the  great 
deep  broken  up,  and  the  windows  of  heaven  opened." 
"Deep  calleth  unto  deep  at  the  noise  of  Thy  water- 
spouts." Christ  drank  the  cup,  and  endured  the 
wrath  perfectly.  He  put  Himself,  judicially,  under 
the  full  weight  of  all  His  people's  liabilities,  and 
gloriously  discharged  them.  The  belief  of  this  gives 
settled  peace  to  the  soul.  If  the  Lord  Jesus  has 
met  all  that  could  be  against  us,  if  He  has  removed 
out  of  the  way  every  hindrance,  if  He  has  put  away 
sin,  if  He  has  exhausted  the  cup  of  wrath  and  judg- 
ment on  our  behalf,  if  He  has  cleared  the  prospect 
of  every  cloud,  should  we  not  enjoy  settled  peace  ? 
Unquestionably.  Peace  is  our  unalienable  portion. 
To  us  belong  the  deep  and  untold  blessedness,  and 
holy  security,  which  redeeming  love  can  bestow  on 
the  righteous  ground  of  Christ's  absolutely  accom- 
plished work. 

Had  Noah  any  anxiety  about  the  billows  of  divine 
j  udgment  ?  None  whatever.  How  could  he  ?  He 
knew  that  ttdlltt  had  been  poured  forth,  while  he 
himself  was  raised,  by  those  very  outpoured  billows, 
into  a  region  of  cloudless  peace.  He  floated  in 
peace  on  that  very  water  by  which  ' '  all  flesh ' '  was 
judged.  He  was  put  beyond  the  reach  of  judgment ; 
and  put  there,  too,  by  God  Himself.  He  might 


CHAPTERS    VI IX.  95 

have  said,  in  the  triumphant  language  of  Romans 
viii,  "If  God  be  for  us,  who  can  be  against  us  ?" 
lie  had  been  invited  in  by  Jehovah  Himself,  as  we 
read,  in  chapter  vii.  1,  "Come  thou  and  all  thy 
house  into  the  ark"  ;  and  when  he  had  taken  his 
place  there,  we  read,  "the  Lord  shut  him  in." 
Here,  assuredly,  was  full  and  perfect  security  for  all 
within.  Jehovah  kept  the  door,  and  no  one  could 
go  in  or  out  without  Him.  There  was  both  a  win- 
dow and  a  door  to  the  ark.  The  Lord  secured,  with 
His  own  omnipotent  hand,  the  door,  and  left  Noah 
the  window  from  which  he  might  look  upward  to  the 
place  from  whence  all  the  judgment  had  emanated, 
and  see  that  no  judgment  remained  for  him.  The 
saved  family  could  only  look  upward,  because  the 
window  was  "above."  (Chap.  vi.  16.)  They  could 
not  see  the  waters  of  judgment,  nor  the  death  and 
desolation  which  those  waters  had  caused.  God's 
salvation — the  "gopher  wood,"  stood  between  them 
and  all  these  things.  They  had  only  to  gaze  upward 
into  a  cloudless  heaven,  the  eternal  dwelling-place 
of  the  One  who  had  condemned  the  world,  and 
saved  them. 

Nothing  can  more  fully  express  the  believer's  per- 
fect security  in  Christ  than  those  words,  "the  Lord 
shut  him  in."  Who  could  open  what  God  had  shut? 
None.  The  family  of  Noah  were  as  safe  as  God 
could  make  them.  There  was  no  power — angelic, 
human,  or  diabolical — which  could  possibly  burst 
open  the  door  of  the  ark,  and  let  the  waters  in. 
That  door  was  shut  by  the  self-same  hand  that  had 


96  GENESIS. 

opened  the  windows  of  heaven,  and  broken  up  the 
fountains  of  the  great  deep.  Thus  Christ  is  spoken 
of  as  the  One  ''that  hath  the  key  of  David,  He  that 
openeth  and  no  man  shutteth,  and  shutteth  and  no 
man  openeth."  (Rev.  iii.  7.)  He  also  holds  in  His 
hand  "the  keys  of  hell  and  of  death."  (Rev.  i.  18.) 
None  can  enter  the  portals  of  the  grave,  nor  go 
forth  therefrom,  without  Him.  He  has  "all  power 
in  heaven  and  on  earth."  He  is  "head  over  all 
things  to  the  Church,"  and  in  Him  the  believer  is 
perfectly  secure.  (Matt,  xxviii.  18;  Eph.  i.  22.) 
Who  could  touch  Noah  ?  What  wave  could  pene- 
trate that  ark  which  was  ' '  pitched  within  and  with- 
out with  pitch ' '  ?  Just  so  now,  who  can  touch  those 
who  have,  by  faith,  retreated  into  the  shadow  of  the 
cross  ?  Every  enemy  has  been  met  and  silenced — 
yes,  silenced  forever.  The  death  of  Christ  has  tri- 
umphantly answered  every  demur;  while,  at  the 
same  time,  His  resurrection  is  the  satisfactory  dec- 
laration of  God's  infinite  complacency  in  that  work 
which  is,  at  once,  the  basis  of  His  righteousness  in 
receiving  us,  and  of  our  confidence  in  drawing  nigh 
unto  Him. 

Hence,  therefore,  the  door  of  our  Ark  being  se- 
cured, by  the  hand  of  God  Himself,  nothing  remains 
for  us  but  to  enjoy  the  window ;  or,  in  other  words, 
to  walk  in  happy  and  holy  communion  with  Him 
who  has  saved  us  from  coming  wrath,  and  made  us 
heirs  and  expectants  of  coming  glory.  Peter  speaks 
of  those  who  "are  blind,  and  cannot  see  afar  off, 
and  have  forgotten  that  they  were  purged  from  their 


CHAPTERS    VI IX.  97 

old  sins."  (2  Peter  i.  9.)  This  is  a  lamentable  con- 
dition for  any  to  be  in,  and  it  is  the  sure  result  of 
not  cultivating  diligent,  prayerful  communion  with 
Him  who  has  eternally  shut  us  in  in  Christ. 

Let  us,  now,  ere  we  proceed  further  with  Noah's 
history,  glance,  for  a  little,  at  the  condition  of  those 
to  whom  he  had  so  long  preached  righteousness. 
We  have  been  looking  at  the  saved,  let  us  now  look 
at  the  lost, — we  have  been  thinking  of  those  within 
the  ark,  let  us  now  look  at  those  without.  No  doubt, 
many  an  anxious  look  would  be  cast  after  the  vessel 
of  mercy,  as  it  rose  with  the  water ;  but,  alas !  "the 
door  was  shut" — the  day  of  grace  was  over — the 
time  of  testimony  closed,  and  that  forever,  so  far  as 
they  were  concerned.  The  same  hand  which  had 
shut  Noah  in  had  shut  them  out,  and  it  was  as  im- 
possible for  those  without  to  get  in  as  it  was  for 
those  within  to  get  out.  The  former  were  irrecover- 
ably lost;  the  latter,  effectually  saved.  The  long- 
suffering  of  God,  and  the  testimony  of  His  servant, 
had  both  been  slighted.  Present  things  had  en- 
grossed them.  "They  did  eat,  they  drank,  they 
married  wives,  and  were  given  in  marriage,  until  the 
day  that  Noah  entered  into  the  ark,  and  the  flood 
came  and  destroyed  them  all."  (Luke  xvii.  26,  27.) 
There  was  nothing  wrong  in  any  of  these  things, 
abstractedly  looked  at.  The  wrong  was  not  in  the 
things  done,  but  in  the  doers  of  them.  Every  one 
of  them  might  be  done  in  the  fear  of  the  Lord,  and 
to  the  glory  of  His  holy  name,  were  they  only  done 
in  faith.  But,  alas !  they  were  not  so  done.  The 


98  GENESIS. 

Word  of  God  was  rejected.  He  told  of  judgment, 
but  they  did  not  believe ;  He  spoke  of  sin  and  ruin, 
but  they  were  not  convinced ;  He  spoke  of  a  rem- 
edy, but  they  would  not  give  heed.  They  went  on 
with  their  own  plans  and  speculations,  and  had  no 
room  for  God.  They  acted  as  if  the  earth  belonged 
to  them,  by  a  lease,  forever.  They  forgot  that  there 
was  a  clause  of  surrender.  They  thought  not  of 
that  solemn  "until."  God  was  shut  out.  "Every 
imagination  of  the  thoughts  of  their  heart  was  only 
evil  continually,"  and  hence,  they  could  do  nothing 
right.  They  thought,  spake  and  acted  for  themselves. 
They  did  their  own  pleasure,  and  forgot  God. 

And,  my  reader,  remember  the  words  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  how  He  said,  "As  it  was  in  the  days 
of  Noah,  so  shall  it  be  in  the  days  of  the  Son  of 
Man."  Some  would  have  us  to  believe,  that  ere  the 
Son  of  Man  appears  in  the  clouds  of  heaven,  this 
earth  shall  be  covered,  from  pole  to  pole,  with  a  fair 
mantle  of  righteousness.  They  would  teach  us  to 
look  for  a  reign  of  righteousness  and  peace,  as  the 
result  of  agencies  now  in  operation ;  but  the  brief 
passage  just  quoted  cuts  up  by  the  roots,  in  a  mo- 
ment, all  such  vain  and  delusive  expectations.  How 
was  it  in  the  days  of  Noah  ?  Did  righteousness 
cover  the  earth  as  the  waters  cover  the  sea  ? — was 
God's  truth  dominant  ? — was  the  earth  filled  with 
the  knowledge  of  the  Lord  ?  Scripture  replies, 
"The  earth  was  filled  with  violence."— "All  flesh 
had  corrupted  His  way  on  the  earth." — "The  earth 
also  was  corrupt  before  God."  Well,  then,  "so  shall 


CHAPTERS    VI IX.  99 

it  be  in  the  days  of  the  Son  of  Man."  This  is  plain 
enough.  "Righteousness"  and  "violence"  are  not 
very  much  like  each  other ;  neither  is  there  any  sim- 
ilarity between  universal  wickedness  and  universal 
peace.  It  only  needs  a  heart  subject  to  the  Word, 
and  freed  from  the  influence  of  preconceived  opin- 
ions, in  order  to  understand  the  true  character  of 
the  days  immediately  preceding  "the  coming  of  the 
Son  of  Man."  Let  not  my  reader  be  led  astray. 
Let  him  reverently  bow  to  Scripture.  Let  him  look 
at  the  condition  of  the  world  "in  the  days  before 
the  flood"  ;  and  let  him  bear  in  mind,  that  "as"  it 
was  then,  "so"  shall  it  be  at  the  close  of  this  pres- 
ent period.  This  is  most  simple — most  conclusive. 
There  was  nothing  like  a  state  of  universal  right- 
eousness and  peace  then,  neither  shall  there  be  any- 
thing like  it  by  and  by. 

No  doubt,  man  displayed  abundant  energy  in 
making  the  world  a  comfortable  and  an  agreeable 
place  for  himself;  but  that  was  a  very  different  thing 
from  making  it  a  suitable  place  for  God.  So,  also, 
at  this  present  time ;  man  is  as  busy  as  he  can  be 
in  clearing  the  stones  off  the  pathway  of  human  life, 
and  making  it  as  smooth  as  possible  ;  but  this  is  not 
"making  straight  in  the  desert  a  highway  for  our 
God"  ;  nor  is  it  making  "the  rough  places  smooth" 
that  all  flesh  may  see  the  salvation  of  Jehovah. 
Civilization  prevails;  but  civilization  is  not  right- 
eousness. The  sweeping  and  garnishing  are  going 
forward ;  but  it  is  not  in  order  to  fit  the  house  for 
Christ,  but  for  Antichrist.  The  wisdom  of  man  is 


100  GENESIS. 

put  forth  in  order  to  cover,  with  the  folds  of  his  own 
drapery,  the  blots  and  blemishes  of  humanity ;  but, 
though  covered,  they  are  not  removed  ! — they  are 
underneath,  and  will,  ere  long,  break  out  in  more 
hideous  deformity  than  ever.  The  painting  of  ver- 
milion will  soon  be  obliterated,  and  the  carved  cedar 
wood  destroyed.  The  dams  by  which  man  sedu- 
lously seeks  to  stem  the  torrent  of  human  wretched- 
ness must  soon  give  way  before  the  overwhelming 
force  thereof.  All  the  efforts  to  confine  the  physical, 
the  mental,  and  the  moral  degredation  of  Adam's 
posterity  within  those  inclosures  which  human  be- 
nevolence, if  3'ou  please,  has  devised,  must,  in  the 
sequel,  prove  abortive.  The  testimony  has  gone 
forth, — "The  end  of  all  flesh  has  come  before  Me." 
It  has  not  come  before  man,  but  it  has  come  before 
God ;  and,  albeit,  the  voice  of  the  scoffers  may  be 
heard,  saying,  u  Where  is  the  promise  of  His  com- 
ing? for  since  the  fathers  fell  asleep,  all  things  con- 
tinue as  they  were  from  the  beginning  of  creation"  ; 
yet  the  moment  is  rapidly  hastening  on,  when  those 
scoffers  will  get  their  answer.  uThe  day  of  the 
Lord  will  come  as  a  thief  in  the  night,  in  the  which 
the  heavens  shall  pass  away  with  a  great  noise-,  and 
the  elements  shall  melt  with  fervent  heat,  the  earth 
also,  and  the  works  that  are  therein,  shall  be  burnt 
up."  (2  Peter  iii.  4-10.)  This,  my  reader,  is  the 
answer  to  the  intellectual  scoffs  of  the  children  of 
this  world,  but  not  to  the  spiritual  affections  and 
expectations  of  the  children  of  God.  These  latter, 
thank  God,  have  a  totally  different  prospect,  even  to 


CHAPTERS    VI — IX.  101 

meet  the  Bridegroom  in  the  air,  before  evil  shall 
have  reached  its  culminating  point,  and  therefore 
before  the  divine  judgment  shall  be  poured  forth 
thereon.  The  Church  of  God  looks  not  for  the 
burning  up  of  the  world,  but  for  the  arising  of  "the 
bright  and  morning  Star." 

Now,  in  whatever  way  we  look  at  the  future — from 
whatever  point  of  view  we  contemplate  it,  whether 
the  object  which  presents  itself  to  the  soul's  vision 
be  the  Church  in  glory,  or  the  world  in  flames — the 
coming  of  the  Bridegroom,  or  the  breaking  in  of  the 
thief — the  morning  Star,  or  the  scorching  sun — the 
translation,  or  the  deluge,  we  must  feel  the  unspeak- 
able importance  of  attending  to  God's  present  testi- 
mony in  grace  to  lost  sinners.  "Now  is  the  accepted 
time ;  behold,  now  is  the  day  of  salvation."  (2  Cor. 
vi.  2.)  "God  was  in  Christ,  reconciling  the  world 
unto  Himself,  not  imputing  their  trespasses  unto 
them."  (2  Cor.  v.  19.)  He  is  reconciling  now;  He 
will  be  judging  by  and  by:  it  is  all  grace  now;  it 
will  be  all  wrath  then:  He  is  pardoning  sin  now, 
through  the  cross ;  He  will  punish  it  then,  in  hell, 
and  that  forever.  He  is  sending  out  a  message  of 
purest,  richest,  freest  grace.  He  is  telling  sinners 
of  an  accomplished  redemption  through  the  precious 
sacrifice  of  Christ.  He  is  declaring  that  all  is  done. 
He  is  waiting  to  be  gracious.  "The  long-suffering 
of  our  Lord  is  salvation."  "The  Lord  is  not  slack 
concerning  His  promise,  as  some  men  count  slack- 
ness, but  is  long-suffering  to  usward,  not  willing 
that  any  should  perish,  but  that  all  should  come  to 


102  GENESIS. 

repentance."  (2  Peter  iii.)  All  this  makes  the  pres- 
ent moment  one  of  peculiar  solemnity.  Unrningled 
grace  declared !  unmingled  wrath  impending !  How 
solemn  ! — how  deeply  solemn  ! 

And,  then,  with  what  profound  interest  should  we 
mark  the  unfolding  of  the  divine  purposes  !  Scrip- 
ture sheds  its  light  upon  these  things ;  and  such  a 
light  too,  that  WTC  need  not,  as  another  has  said, 
"vacantly  stare  on  passing  events,  as  those  who 
know  not  where  they  are  and  whither  they  are  go- 
ing." We  should  accurately  know  our  bearings. 
We  should  fully  understand  the  direct  tendency  of 
all  the  principles  now  at  work.  We  should  be  well 
aware  of  the  vortex  toward  which  all  the  tributary 
streams  are  rapidly  flowing  on.  Men  dream  of  a 
golden  age ;  they  promise  themselves  a  millennium 
of  the  arts  and  sciences  ;  they  feed  upon  the  thought 
that  "to-morrow  shall  be  as  this  day,  and  more 
abundant."  But,  oh!  how  utterly  vain  are  all  those 
thoughts,  dreams  and  promises.  Faith  can  see  the 
clouds  gathering  thickly  around  the  world's  horizon. 
Judgment  is  coming, — the  day  of  wrath  is  at  hand. 
The  door  will  soon  be  shut.  The  "strong  delusion" 
will  soon  set  in,  with  terrible  intensity.  How  need- 
ful, then,  it  is  to  raise  a  warning  voice — to  seek,  by 
faithful  testimony,  to  counteract  man's  pitiable  self- 
complacency.  True,  in  so  doing,  we  shall  be  ex- 
posed to  the  charge  which  Ahab  brought  against 
Micaiah,  of  always  prophesying  evil ;  but  no  matter 
for  that.  Let  us  prophesy  what  the  Word  of  God 
prophesies,  and  let  us  do  this  simply  for  the  purpose 


CHAPTERS    VI IX.  103 

of  "persuading  men."  The  Word  of  God  only 
removes  from  beneath  our  feet  a  hollow  foundation, 
for  the  purpose  of  placing  instead  thereof  a  founda- 
tion which  can  never  be  moved.  It  only  takes  away 
from  us  a  delusive  hope,  to  give  us,  instead,  "a 
hope  which  makcth  not  ashamed."  It  takes  away 
"a  broken  reed,"  to  give  us  "the  rock  of  ages." 
It  sets  aside  "a  broken  cistern,  which  can  hold  no 
water,"  to  set  in  its  place  "the  fountain  of  living 
waters."  This  is  true  love, — it  is  God's  love.  He 
will  not  cry,  "  peace,  peace,  when  there  is  no  peace," 
nor  "daub  with  untempered  mortar."  He  would 
have  the  sinner's  heart  resting  sweetly  in  His  own 
eternal  Ark  of  safety,  enjoying  present  communion 
with  Himself,  and  fondly  cherishing  the  hope,  that, 
when  all  the  ruin,  the  desolation,  and  the  judgment, 
have  passed  away,  it  shall  rest  with  Him  in  a  re- 
stored creation. 

We  shall  now  turn  to  Noah,  and  contemplate  him 
in  a  new  position.  We  have  seen  him  building  the 
ark,  we  have  seen  him  in  the  ark,  and  we  shall  now 
view  him  going  forth  of  the  ark,  and  taking  his  place 
in  the  new  world.*  "And  God  remembered  Noah." 

*  I  would  here  mention,  for  my  reader's  prayerful  consideration, 
a  thought  very  familiar  to  the  minds  of  those  who  have  specially 
given  themselves  to  the  study  of  what  is  called  "  dispensational 
truth  "  It  has  reference  to  Enoch  and  Noah.  The  former  was 
taken  away,  as  we  have  seen,  before  the  judgment  came ;  whereas 
the  latter  was  carried  through  the  judgment.  Now,  it  is  thought 
that  Enoch  is  a  ligure  of  the  Church,  who  shall  be  taken  away  be- 
fore human  evil  reaches  its  climax,  and  before  the  divine  judgment 
falls  thereon.  Noah,  on  the  other  hand,  is  a  ligure  of  the  remnant 
of  Israel,  who  shall  be  brought  through  the  deep  waters  of  afflic- 
tion, and  through  the  fire  of  judgment,  and  led  into  the  full  enjoy- 


104  GENESIS. 

The  strange  work  of  judgment  being  over,  the  saved 
family,  and  all  in  association  with  them,  come  into 
remembrance.  "  God  made  a  wind  to  pass  over  the 
earth  ;  and  the  waters  assuaged  ;  the  fountains  also 
of  the  deep  and  the  windows  of  heaven  were  stopped, 
and  the  rain  from  heaven  was  restrained."  The 
beams  of  the  sun  now  begin  to  act  upon  a  world 
that  had  been  baptized  with  a  baptism  of  judgment. 
Judgment  is  God's  ''strange  work."  He  delights 
not  in,  though  He  is  glorified  by,  it.  Blessed  be  His 
name,  He  is  ever  ready  to  leave  the  place  of  judg- 
ment, and  enter  that  of  mercy,  because  He  delights 
in  mercy. 

"And  it  came  to  pass,  at  the  end  of  forty  days, 
that  Noah  opened  the  window  of  the  ark  which  he 
had  made :  and  he  sent  forth  a  raven,  which  went 
forth,  to  and  fro,  until  the  waters  were  dried  up  from 
off  the  earth."  The  unclean  bird  made  its  escape, 
and  found,  no  doubt,  a  resting-place  on  some  float- 
ing carcass.  It  sought  not  the  ark  again.  Not  so 
the  dove, — "She  found  no  rest  for  the  sole  of  her 
foot,  and  she  returned  unto  him  into  the  ark  .  .  . 
and  again  he  sent  forth  the  dove  out  of  the  ark  : 
and  the  dove  came  in  to  him  in  the  evening ;  and, 
lo,  in  her  mouth  was  an  olive  leaf,  plucked  off." 
Sweet  emblem  of  the  renewed  mind,  which,  amid 
the  surrounding  desolation,  seeks  and  finds  its  rest 
and  portion  in  Christ ;  and  not  only  so,  but  also  lays 

mciit  of  millennial  bliss,  in  virtue  of  God's  everlasting  covenant. 
I  may  add,  that  I  quite  receive  this  thought  in  reference  to  those 
two  Old  Testament  fathers.  I  consider  that  it  has  the  full  support 
of  the  general  scope  and  analogy  of  holy  Scripture. 

. 


CHAPTERS    VI IX.  105 

hold  of  the  earnest  of  the  inheritance,  and  furnishes 
the  blessed  proof  that  judgment  has  passed  away, 
and  that  a  renewed  earth  is  coming  fully  into  view. 
The  carnal  mind,  on  the  contrary,  can  rest  in  any- 
thing and  everything  but  Christ.  It  can  feed  upon 
all  uncleanness.  "The  olive  leaf"  has  no  attraction 
for  it.  It  can  find  all  it  needs  in  a  scene  of  death, 
and  hence  is  not  occupied  with  the  thought  of  a  new 
world  and  its  glories ;  but  the  heart  that  is  taught 
and  exercised  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  can  only  rest 
and  rejoice  in  that  in  which  He  rests  and  rejoices. 
It  rests  in  the  Ark  of  His  salvation  "until  the  times 
of  the  restitution  of  all  things."  May  it  be  thus 
with  you  and  me,  beloved  reader, — may  Jesus  be 
the  abiding  rest  and  portion  of  our  hearts,  that  so 
we  may  not  seek  them  in  a  world  which  is  under  the 
judgment  of  God.  The  dove  went  back  to  Noah, 
and  waited  for  his  time  of  rest :  and  we  should  ever 
find  our  place  with  Christ,  until  the  time  of  His  ex- 
altation and  glory  in  the  ages  to  come.  "He  that 
shall  come  will  come,  and  will  not  tarry."  All  we 
want,  as  to  this,  is  a  little  patience.  May  God 
direct  our  hearts  into  His  love,  and  into  "the  pa- 
tience of  Christ." 

"And  God  spake  unto  Noah,  saying,  'Go  forth 
of  the  ark.'  "  The  same  God  that  had  said,  "Make 
thee  an  ark,"  and  "Come  thou  into  the  ark,"  now 
says,  '  'Go  forth  of  the  ark. "  "  And  Noah  went  forth 
....  and  builded  an  altar  unto  the  Lord."  All 
is  simple  obedience.  There  is  the  obedience  of  faith 
and  the  worship  of  faith:  both  go  together.  The 


106  GENESIS. 

altar  is  erected  where,  just  before,  all  had  been  a 
scene  of  death  and  judgment.  The  ark  had  borne 
Noah  and  his  family  safely  over  the  waters  of  judg- 
ment. It  had  carried  him  from  the  old  into  the  new 
world,  where  he  now  takes  his  place  as  a  worshiper.* 
And,  be  it  observed,  it  was  "unto  the  Lord"  he 
erected  his  altar.  Superstition  would  have  wor- 
shiped the  ark,  as  being  the  means  of  salvation.  It 
is  ever  the  tendency  of  the  heart  to  displace  God  by 
His  ordinances.  Now,  the  ark  was  a  very  marked 

*It  is  interesting  to  look  at  this  entire  subject  of  the  ark  and 
deluge,  in  connection  with  that  most  important  and  deeply  signifi- 
cant ordinance  of  baptism.  A  truly  baptized  person,  that  is,  one 
who,  as  the  apostle  says,  "obeys  from  the  heart  that  type  of  doc- 
trine to  which  he  is  delivered,"  is  one  who  has  passed  from  the  old 
world  into  the  new,  in  spirit  and  principle,  and  by  faith.  The  water 
rolls  over  his  person,  signifying  that  his  old  man  is  buried,  that  his 
place  in  nature  is  ignored— that  his  old  nature  is  entirely  set  aside, 
—in  short,  that  he  is  a  dead  man.  When  he  is  plunged  beneath  the 
water,  expression  is  given  to  the  fact  that  his  name,  place  and  ex- 
istence in  nature  are  put  out  of  sight,— that  the  flesh,  with  all  that 
pertained  thereto— its  sins,  its  iniquities,  its  liabilities— is  buried  in 
the  grave  of  Christ,  and  never  can  come  into  God's  sight  again. 

Again,  when  he  rises  up  out  of  the  water,  expression  is  given  to 
the  truth,  that  he  only  comes  up  as  the  possessor  of  a  new  life, 
even  the  resurrection-life  of  Christ.  If  Christ  had  not  been  raised 
from  the  dead,  the  believer  could  not  come  up  out  of  the  water, 
but  should  remain  buried  beneath  its  surface,  as  the  simple  expres- 
sion of  the  place  which  righteously  belongs  to  nature.  But,  inas- 
much as  Christ  rose  from  the  dead,  in  the  power  of  a  new  life, 
having  entirely  put  away  our  sins,  we  also  come  up  out  of  the 
water;  and,  in  so  doing,  set  forth  the  fact  that  we  are  put,  by  the 
grace  of  God,  and  through  the  death  of  Christ,  in  full  possession 
of  a  new  life,  to  which  divine  righteousness  inseparably  attaches. 
"  We  are  buried  with  Him  by  baptism  into  death ;  that  like  as  Christ 
was  raised  fi'om  the  dead  by  the  glory  of  the  Father,  even  so  we 
also  should  walk  in  newness  of  life."  (See  Rom.  vi.  and  Col.  ii. 
passim.  Comp.  also  1  Peter  iii.  18-22.)  All  this  makes  the  institu- 
tion of  baptism  one  of  immense  importance,  and  pregnant  with 
meaning. 


CHAPTERS    VI — IX.  107 

and  manifest  ordinance ;  but  Noah's  faith  passed 
beyond  the  ark  to  the  God  of  the  ark ;  and  hence, 
when  he  stepped  out  of  it,  instead  of  casting  back  a 
lingering  look  at  it,  or  regarding  it  as  an  object  of 
worship  or  veneration,  he  built  an  altar  unto  the 
Lord,  and  worshiped  Him ;  and  the  ark  is  never 
heard  of  again. 

This  teaches  us  a  very  simple,  but,  at  the  same 
time,  a  very  seasonable  lesson.  The  moment  the 
heart  lets  slip  the  reality  of  God  Himself,  there  is 
no  placing  a  limit  to  its  declension ;  it  is  on  the 
highway  to  the  grossest  forms  of  idolatry.  In  the 
judgment  of  faith,  an  ordinance  is  only  valuable  as 
it  conveys  God,  in  living  power,  to  the  soul, — that  is 
to  say,  so  long  as  faith  can  enjoy  Christ  therein,  ac- 
cording to  His  own  appointment.  Beyond  this,  it  is 
worth  just  nothing;  and  if  it,  in  the  smallest  de- 
gree, comes  between  the  heart  and  His  precious 
work  and  His  glorious  Person,  it  ceases  to  be  an 
ordinance  of  God,  and  becomes  an  instrument  of 
the  devil.  In  the  judgment  of  superstition,  the  or- 
dinance is  everything,  and  God  is  shut  out ;  and  the 
name  of  God  is  only  made  use  of  to  exalt  the  ordi- 
nance, and  give  it  a  deep  hold  of  the  human  heart, 
and  a  mighty  influence  over  the  human  mind.  Thus 
it  was  that  the  children  of  Israel  worshiped  the  bra- 
zen serpent.  That  which  had  once  been  a  channel 
of  blessing  to  them,  because  used  of  God,  became, 
when  their  hearts  had  departed  from  the  Lord,  an 
object  of  superstitious  veneration ;  and  Hezekiak 
had  to  break  it  in  pieces,  and  call  it  "a  piece  of 


108  GENESIS. 

brass."  In  itself,  it  was  only  a  "Nehushtan,"  but 
when  used  of  God,  it  was  a  means  of  rich  blessing. 
Now,  faith  owned  it  to  be  what  divine  revelation  said 
it  was ;  but  superstition,  throwing,  as  it  ever  does, 
divine  revelation  overboard,  lost  the  real  purpose  of 
God  in  the  thing,  and  actually  made  a  god  of  the 
thing  itself.  (See  2  Kings  xviii.  4.) 

And,  my  reader,  is  there  not  a  deep  lesson  in  all 
this  for  the  present  age  ?  I  am  convinced  there  is. 
We  live  in  an  age  of  ordinances.  The  atmosphere 
which  enwraps  the  professing  church,  is  impregnated 
with  the  elements  of  a  traditionary  religion,  which 
robs  the  soul  of  Christ  and  His  divinely  full  salva- 
tion. It  is  not  that  human  traditions  boldly  deny 
that  there  is  such  a  person  as  Christ,  or  such  a  thing 
as  the  cross  of  Christ :  wrere  they  to  do  so,  the  eyes 
of  many  might  be  opened.  However,  it  is  not  thus. 
The  evil  is  of  a  far  more  insidious  and  dangerous 
character.  Ordinances  are  added  to  Christ  and  the 
work  of  Christ.  The  sinner  is  not  saved  by  Christ 
alone,  but  by  Christ  and  ordinances.  Thus  he  is 
robbed  of  Christ  altogether ;  for  it  will  assuredly  be 
found  that  Christ  and  ordinances  wall  prove,  in  the 
sequel,  to  be  ordinances  and  not  Christ.  This  is  a 
solemn  consideration  for  all  who  stand  up  for  a  re- 
ligion of  ordinances.  "If  ye  be  circumcised,  Christ 
shall  profit  you  nothing."  It  must  be  Christ  wholly, 
or  not  at  all.  The  devil  persuades  men  that  they  are 
honoring  Christ  when  they  make  much  of  His  ordi- 
nances ;  whereas,  all  the  while,  he  knows  full  well 
that  they  are,  in  reality,  setting  Christ  entirely  aside, 


CHAPTERS    VI IX.  109 

and  deifying  the  ordinance.  I  would  only  repeat 
here  a  remark  which  I  have  made  elsewhere,  namely, 
that  superstition  makes  everything  of  the  ordinance  ; 
infidelity,  profanity,  and  mysticism,  make  nothing  of 
it ;  faith  uses  it  according  to  divine  appointment. 

But  I  have  already  extended  this  section  far  be- 
yond the  limit  which  I  had  prescribed  for  it.  I  shall 
therefore  close  it  with  a  hasty  glance  at  the  contents 
of  chapter  ix.  In  it  we  have  the  new  covenant, 
under  which  creation  was  set,  after  the  deluge,  to- 
gether with  the  token  of  that  covenant.  "  And  God 
blessed  Noah  and  his  sons,  and  said  unto  them,  4Be 
fruitful,  and  multiply,  and  replenish  the  earth.' ' 
Observe,  God's  command  to  man,  on  his  entrance 
into  the  restored  earth,  was  to  re-fill  that  earth, — not 
parts  of  the  earth,  but  the  earth.  He  desired  to 
have  men  dispersed  abroad,  over  the  face  of  the 
world,  and  not  relying  upon  their  own  concentrated 
energies.  We  shall  see,  in  chapter  xi,  how  man 
neglected  all  this. 

The  fear  of  man  is  now  lodged  in  the  heart  of 
every  other  creature.  Henceforth,  the  service  ren- 
dered by  the  inferior  orders  of  creation  to  man, 
must  be  the  constrained  result  of  "fear  and  dread.'' 

In  life  and  in  death,  the  lower  animals  were  to  be 
at  the  service  of  man.  All  creation  is  delivered,  by 
God's  everlasting  covenant,  from  the  fear  of  a  sec- 
ond deluge.  Judgment  is  never  again  to  take  that 
shape.  "The  world  that  then  was,  being  overflowed 
with  water,  perished  ;  but  the  heavens  and  the  earth, 
which  are  now,  by  the  same  word  are  kept  in  store, 


110  GENESIS. 

reserved  unto  fire  against  the  day  of  judgment  and 
perdition  of  ungodly  men."  The  earth  was  once 
purged  with  water ;  and  it  will  be  again  purged  by 
fire  ;  and  in  this  second  purgation  none  will  escape, 
save  those  who  have  fled  for  refuge  to  Him  who  has 
passed  through  the  deep  waters  of  death,  and  met 
the  fire  of  divine  j  udgment. 

"And  God  said,  'This  is  the  token  of  the  cove- 
nant ....  I  do  set  My  bow  in  the  cloud  .  .  . 
and  I  will  remember  My  covenant.'  "  The  whole 
creation  rests,  as  to  its  exemption  from  a  second 
deluge,  on  the  eternal  stability  of  God's  covenant, 
of  which  the  bow  is  the  token ;  and  it  is  happy  to 
bear  .in  mind,  that  when  the  bow  appears,  the  eye  of 
God  rests  upon  it ;  and  man  is  cast  not  upon  his 
own  imperfect  and  most  uncertain  memory,  but  upon 
God's.  "I,"  says  God,  "will  remember."  How 
sweet  to  think  of  what  God  will,  and  what  He  will 
not,  remember  !  He  will  remember  His  covenant, 
but  He  will  not  remember  His  people's  sins.  The 
cross,  which  ratifies  the  former,  puts  away  the  latter. 
The  belief  of  this  gives  peace  to  the  troubled  heart 
and  uneasy  conscience. 

"And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  when  I  bring  a  cloud 
over  the  earth,  that  the  bow  shall  be  seen  in  the 
cloud.''1  Beautiful  and  most  expressive  emblem  ! 
The  beams  of  the  sun,  reflected  from  that  which 
threatens  judgment,  tranquilize  the  heart,  as  telling 
of  God's  covenant,  God's  salvation,  and  God's  re- 
membrance. Precious,  most  precious  sunbeams  ! 
deriving  additional  beauty  from  the  very  cloud 


CHAPTERS    VI IX.  1  1  1 

which  reflects  them.  How  forcibly  does  this  bow  in 
the  cloud  remind  us  of  Calvary.  There  we  see  a 
cloud  indeed — a  dark,  thick,  heavy  cloud  of  judg- 
ment, discharging  itself  upon  the  sacred  head  of  the 
Lamb  of  God — a  cloud  so  dark,  that  even  at  mid- 
day ''there  was  darkness  over  all  the.  earth."  But, 
blessed  be  God,  faith  discerns,  in  that  heaviest  cloud 
that  ever  gathered,  the  most  brilliant  and  beauteous 
bow  that  ever  appeared ;  for  it  sees  the  bright  beams 
of  God's  eternal  love  darting  through  the  awful 
gloom  and  reflected  in  the  cloud.  It  hears,  too,  the 
words,  "It is  finished,"  issuing  from  amid  the  dark- 
ness ;  and  in  those  words  it  recognizes  the  perfect 
ratification  of  God's  everlasting  covenant,  not  only 
with  creation,  but  with  the  tribes  of  Israel  and  the 
Church  of  God. 

The  last  paragraph  of  this  chapter  presents  a  hu- 
miliating spectacle.  The  lord  of  creation  fails  to 
govern  himself, — "And  Noah  began  to  be  a  hus- 
bandman, and  he  planted  a  vineyard  ;  and  he  drank 
of  the  wine,  and  was  drunken ;  and  he  was  un- 
covered within  his  tent."  What  a  condition  for 
Noah,  the  only  righteous  man,  the  preacher  of  right- 
eousness, to  be  found  in  !  Alas  !  what  is  man  ? 
Look  at  him  where  you  will,  and  you  see  only  fail- 
ure. In  Eden,  he  fails;  in  the  restored  earth,  he 
fails  ;  in  Canaan,  he  fails  ;  in  the  Church,  he  fails  ; 
in  the  presence  of  millennial  bliss  and  glory,  ho 
fails  ; — he  fails  everywhere,  and  in  all  things :  there 
is  no  good  thing  in  him.  Let  his  advantages  be 
ever  so  great,  his  privileges  ever  so  vast,  his  position 


112  GENESIS.* 

ever  so  desirable,  he  can  only  exhibit  failure  and  sin. 
We  must,  however,  look  at  Noah  in  two  ways, 
namely,  as  a  type,  and  as  a  man  ;  and  while  the 
type  is  full  of  beauty  and  meaning,  the  man  is  full 
of  sin  and  foil}' ;  yet  the  Holy  Ghost  has  written 
these  words:  "Noah  was  a  just  man,  and  perfect 
in  his  generation;  and  Noah  walked  with  God." 
Divine  grace  had  covered  all  his  sins,  and  clothed 
his  person  with  a  spotless  robe  of  righteousness. 
Though  Noah  exposed  his  nakedness,  God  did  not 
see  it,  for  He  looked  not  at  him  in  the  weakness  of 
his  own  condition,  but  in  the  full  power  of  divine 
and  everlasting  righteousness.  Hence  we  may  see 
how  entirely  astray — how  totally  alienated  from  God 
and  His  thoughts — Ham  was,  in  the  course  he 
adopted ;  he  evidently  knew  nothing  of  the  blessed- 
ness of  the  man  whose  iniquity  is  forgiven,  and  his 
sin  covered.  On  the  contra^,  Shem  and  Japheth 
exhibit,  in  their  conduct,  a  fine  specimen  of  the 
divine  method  of  dealing  with  human  nakedness ; 
wherefore  they  inherit  a  blessing,  whereas  Ham 
inherits  a  curse. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THIS  section  of  our  book  records  the  generations 
of   Noah's    three    sons,   noticing,    especially, 
Nirnrod,  the  founder  of  the  kingdom  of  Babel,  or 
Babylon,  a  name  which  occupies  a  very  prominent 
place  on  the  page  of  inspiration.    Babylon  is  a  well- 


CHAPTER   X.  113 

known  name — a  well-known  influence.  From  the 
tenth  chapter  of  Genesis,  clown  to  the  eighteenth 
chapter  of  Revelation,  Babylon  again  and  again 
appears  before  us,  and  always  as  something  decid- 
edly hostile  to  those  who  occupy,  for  the  time  being, 
the  position  of  public  testimony  for  God.  Not  that 
we  are  to  look  upon  the  Babylon  of  Old  Testament 
scripture  as  identical  with  the  Babylon  of  the  Apoc- 
alypse. By  no  means.  I  believe  the  former  is  a 
city ;  the  latter,  a  system ;  but  both  the  city  and 
the  system  exert  a  powerful  influence  against  God's 
people.  Hardly  had  Israel  entered  upon  the  wars  of 
Canaan,  when  "a  Babylonish  garment"  brought  de- 
filement and  sorrow,  defeat  and  confusion,  into  the 
host.  This  is  the  earliest  record  of  Babylon's  perni- 
cious influence  upon  the  people  of  God ;  but  every 
student  of  Scripture  is  aware  of  the  place  which 
Babylon  gets  throughout  the  entire  history  of  Israel. 
This  would  not  be  the  place  to  notice,  in  detail, 
the  various  passages  in  which  this  cit}^  is  intro- 
duced. I -would  only  remark  here,  that  whenever 
God  has  a  corporate  witness  on  the  earth,  Satan  has 
a  Babylon  to  mar  and  corrupt  that  witness.  When 
God  connects  His  name  with  a  city  on  the  earth, 
then  Babylon  takes  the  form  of  a  city ;  and  when 
God  connects  His  name  with  the  Church,  then  Bab- 
ylon takes  the  form  of  a  corrupt  religious  system, 
called  "the  great  whore,"  "the  mother  of  abomina- 
tions," etc.  In  a  word,  Satan's  Babylon  is  always 
seen  as  the  instrument  moulded  and  fashioned  by 
his  hand,  for  the  purpose  of  counteracting  the  divine 


1 14  GENESIS. 

operations,  whether  in  Israel  of  old,  or  the  Church 
now.  Throughout  the  Old  Testament,  Israel  and 
Babylon  are  seen,  as  it  were,  in  opposite  scales, — 
when  Israel  is  up,  Babylon  is  down ;  and  when 
Babylon  is  up,  Israel  is  down.  Thus,  when  Israel 
had  utterly  failed  as  Jehovah's  witness,  "the  king 
of  Babylon  broke  his  bones,"  and  swallowed  him 
up.  The  vessels  of  the  house  of  God,  wrhich  ought 
to  have  remained  in  the  city  of  Jerusalem,  were 
carried  away  to  the  city  of  Babylon.  But  Isaiah, 
in  his  sublime  prophecy,  leads  us  onward  to  the 
opposite  of  all  this.  He  presents,  in  most  magnifi- 
cent strains,  a  picture,  in  which  Israel's  star  is  in 
the  ascendant,  and  Babylon  entirely  sunk. — uAnd 
it  shall  come  to  pass  in  the  day  that  the  Lord  shall 
give  thee  rest  from  thy  sorrow,  and  from  thy  fear, 
and  from  the  hard  bondage  wherein  thou  wast  made 
to  serve,  that  thou  shalt  take  up  this  proverb  against 
the  king  of  Babylon,  and  say,  How  hath  the  op- 
pressors ceased  ! — the  golden  city  ceased  !  .  .  .  . 
since  thou  art  laid  down,  no  feller  is  come  up 
against  us."  (Isaiah  xiv.  3-8.) 

Thus  much  as  to  the  Babylon  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. Then,  as  to  the  Babylon  of  Revelation,  my 
reader  has  only  to  turn  to  the  seventeenth  and  eight- 
eenth chapters  of  that  book  to' see  her  character  and 
end.  She  is  presented  in  marked  contrast  with  the 
bride,  the  Lamb's  wife ;  and  as  to  her  end,  she  is 
cast  as  a  great  millstone  into  the  sea ;  after  which 
we  have  the  marriage  of  the  Lamb,  with  all  its  ac- 
companying bliss  and  glory. 


CHAPTER    X.  115 

However,  I  could  not  attempt  to  pursue  this  most 
interesting  subject  here :  I  have  merely  glanced  at  it 
in  connection  with  the  name  of  Nimrod.  I  feel  as- 
sured that  my  reader  will  find  himself  amply  repaid 
for  any  trouble  he  may  take  in  the  close  examination 
of  all  those  scriptures  in  which  the  name  of  Babylon 
is  introduced.  We  shall  now  return  to  our  chapter. 

"And  Cush  begat  Nimrod:  he  began  to  be  a 
mighty  one  in  the  earth.  He  was  a  mighty  hunter 
before  the  Lord :  wherefore  it  is  said.  '  Even  as 
Nimrod,  the  mighty  hunter  before  the  Lord.'  And 
the  beginning  of  his  kingdom  was  Babel,  and  Erech, 
and  Accad,  and  Calneh,  in  the  land  of  Shinar." 
Here,  then,  we  have  the  character  of  the  founder  of 
Babylon.  He  was  "a  mighty  one  in  the  earth" — • 
"a  mighty  hunter  before  the  Lord."  Such  was  the 
origin  of  Babylon ;  and  its  character,  throughout 
the  entire  book  of  God,  remarkably  corresponds 
therewith.  It  is  always  seen  as  a  mighty  influence 
in  the  earth,  acting  in  positive  antagonism  to  every- 
thing which  owes  its  origin  to  heaven  ;  and  it  is  not 
until  this  Babylon  has  been  totally  abolished  that 
the  cry  is  heard,  amid  the  hosts  above,  "Alleluia  ! 
for  the  Lord  God  omnipotent  reigneth."  Then,  all 
Babylon's  mighty  hunting  will  be  over  forever, — 
whether  it  be  its  hunting  of  wild  beasts  to  subdue 
them,  or  its  hunting  of  souls  to  destroy  them.  All 
its  might  and  all  its  glory,  all  its  pomp  and  pride, 
its  wealth  and  luxury,  its  light  and  joy,  its  glitter 
and  glare,  its  powerful  attractions  and  wide-spread 
influence,  shall  have  passed  away  forever.  She  shall 


116  GENESIS. 

be  swept  with  the  besom  of  destruction,  and  plunged 
in  the  darkness,  the  horror  and  desolation,  of  an 
everlasting  night.  "How  long,  O  Lord?" 


CHAPTER  XI. 

THIS  is  a  chapter  of  very  deep  interest  to  the 
spiritual  mind.  It  records  two  great  facts, 
namely,  the  building  of  Babel,  and  the  call  of  Abra- 
ham ;  or,  in  other  words,  man's  effort  to  provide 
for  himself,  and  God's  'provision  made  known  to 
faith, — man's  attempt  to  establish  himself  in  the 
earth,  and  God's  calling  a  man  out  of  it,  to  find  his 
portion  and  his  home  in  heaven. 

"And  the  whole  earth  was  of  one  language  and 
of  one  speech.  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  they  jour- 
neyed from  the  east,  that  they  found  a  plain  in  the 
land  of  Shinar ;  and  they  dwelt  there.  .  .  .  And 
they  said,  4  Go  to,  let  us  build  us  a  city,  and  a  tower 
whose  top  may  reach  unto  heaven  ;  and  let  us  make 
us  a  name,  lest  we  be  scattered  abroad  upon  the 
face  of  the  whole  earth.' '  The  human  heart  ever 
seeks  a  name,  a  portion,  and  a  centre  in  the  earth. 
It  knows  nothing  of  aspirations  after  heaven,  heav- 
en's God,  or  heaven's  glory.  Left  to  itself,  it  will 
ever  find  its  objects  in  this  lower  world, — it  will  ever 
"build  beneath  the  skies."  It  needs  God's  call, 
God's  revelation,  and  God's  power,  to  lift  the  heart 
of  man  above  this  present  world,  for  man  is  a  grov- 


CHAPTER    XI.  117 

eling  creature — alienated  from  heaven,  and  allied  to 
earth.  In  the  scene  now  before  us,  there  is  no  ac- 
knowledgment of  God, — no  looking  up  to,  or  wait- 
ing on,  Him ;  nor  was  it  the  thought  of  the  human 
heart  to  set  up  a  place  in  which  God  might  dwell- 
to  gather  materials  for  the  purpose  of  building  a 
habitation  for  Him — alas  !  no ;  His  name  is  never 
once  mentioned.  To  make  a  name  for  himself  was 
man's  object  on  the  plain  of  Shinar;  and  such  has 
been  his  object  ever  since.  Whether  we  contemplate 
man  on  the  plain  of  Shinar,  or  on  the  banks  of  the 
Tiber,  we  find  him  to  be  the  same  self-seeking,  self- 
exulting,  God-excluding  creature  throughout.  There 
is  a  melancholy  consistency  in  all  his  purposes,  his 
principles  and  his  ways, — he  ever  seeks  to  shut  out 
God  and  exalt  himself. 

Now,  in  what  light  soever  we  view  this  Babel  con- 
federacy, it  is  most  instructive  to  see  in  it  the  early 
display  of  man's  genius  and  energies,  regardless  of 
God.  In  looking  down  along  the  stream  of  human 
history,  we  may  easily  perceive  a  marked  tendency 
to  confederacy,  or  association.  Man  seeks,  for  the 
most  part,  to  compass  his  great  ends  in  this  way. 
Whether  it  be  in  the  way  of  philanthropy,  religion, 
or  politics,  nothing  can  be  done  without  an  associa- 
tion of  men  regularly  organized.  It  is  well  to  see 
this  principle, — well  to  mark  its  incipient  working — 
to  see  the  earliest  model  which  the  page  of  inspira- 
tion affords  of  a  human  association,  as  exhibited  on 
the  plain  of  Shinar,  in  its  design,  its  object,  its  at- 
tempt, its  overthrow.  If  we  look  around  us  at  the 


118  GENESIS. 

present  moment,  we  see  the  whole  scene  filled  with 
associations.  To  name  them  were  useless,  for  they 
are  as  numerous  as  are  the  purposes  of  the  human 
heart.  But  it  is  important  to  mark,  that  the  first  of 
all  these  was  the  Shinar  association,  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  human  interests,  and  the  exaltation 
of  the  human  name, — objects  which  may  well  be  set 
in  competition  with  any  that  engage  the  attention 
of  this  enlightened  and  civilized  age.  But,  in  the 
judgment  of  faith,  there  is  one  grand  defect,  namely, 
God  is  shut  out ;  and  to  attempt  to  exalt  man  with- 
out God,  is  to  exalt  him  to  a  dizzy  height,  only  that 
he  may  be  dashed  down  into  hopeless  confusion  and 
irretrievable  ruin.  The  Christian  should  only  know 
one  association,  and  that  is,  the  Church  of  the  living 
God,  incorporated  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  came 
down  from  heaven  as  the  witness  of  Christ's  glorifi- 
cation, to  baptize  believers  into  one  body,  and  con- 
stitute them  God's  dwelling-place.  Babylon  is  the 
very  opposite  of  this,  in  every  particular ;  and  she 
becomes  at  the  close,  as  we  know,  "the  habitation 
of  devils."  (See  Rev.  xviii.) 

u  And  the  Lord  said,  'Behold,  the  people  is  one, 
and  the}'  have  all  one  language  ;  and  this  they  begin 
to  do:  and  now  nothing  will  be  restrained  from 
them,  which  they  have  imagined  to  do.  Go  to,  let 
us  go  down,  and  there  confound  their  language,  that 
they  may  not  understand  one  another's  speech.*  So 
the  Lord  scattered  them  abroad  from  thence  upon 
the  face  of  all  the  earth ;  and  they  left  off  to  build 
the  city."  Such  was  the  end  of  man's  first  associa- 


CHAPTER    XI.  "119 

tion.  Thus  it  will  be  to  the  end.  "  Associate  your- 
selves, O  ye  people,  and  ye  shall  be  broken  in  pieces 
....  gird  yourselves,  and  ye  shall  be  broken  in 
pieces ;  gird  yourselves,  and  ye  shall  be  broken  in 
pieces."  (Isaiah  viii.  9.)  How  different  it  is  when 
God  associates  men  !  In  the  second  chapter  of 
Acts,  we  see  the  blessed  One  coming  down,  in  infi- 
nite grace,  to  meet  man,  in  the  veiy  circumstances 
in  which  his  sin  had  set  him.  The  Holy  Ghost 
enabled  the  messengers  of  grace  to  deliver  their 
message  in  the  very  tongue  wherein  each  was  born. 
Precious  proof  this,  that  God  desired  to  reach  man's 
heart  with  the  sweet  story  of  grace  !  The  law  from 
the  fiery  mount  was  not  thus  promulgated.  When 
.God  was  telling  what  m'an  ought  to  be,  He  spoke  in 
one  tongue  ;  but  when  He  was  telling  what  He  Him- 
self was,  He  spoke  in  many.  Grace  broke  through 
the  barrier  which  man's  pride  and  folly  had  caused 
to  be  erected,  in  order  that  every  man  might  hear 
and  understand  the  glad  tidings  of  salvation — "the 
wonderful  works  of  God."  And  to  what  end  was 
this  ?  Just  to  associate  men  on  God's  ground, 
round  God's  centre,  and  on  God's  principles.  It 
was  to  give  them,  in  reality,  one  language,  one 
centre,  one  object,  one  hope,  one  life.  It  was  to 
gather  them  in  such  a  way  as  that  they  never  should 
be  scattered  or  confounded  again ;  to  give  them  a 
name  and  a  place  which  should  endure  forever ;  to 
build  for  them  a  tower  and  a  city  which  should  not 
only  have  their  top  reaching  to  heaven,  but  their 
imperishable  foundation  laid  in  heaven  by  the  om- 
9 


120-  GENESIS. 

nipotent  hand  of  God  Himself.  It  was  to  gather 
them  around  the  glorious  Person  of  a  risen  and 
highly  exalted  Christ,  and  unite  them  all  in  one 
grand  design  of  magnifying  and  adoring  Him. 

If  my  reader  will  turn  to  the  seventh  chapter  of 
Revelation,  he  will  find,  at  the  close  thereof,  "All 
nations,  and  kindreds,  and  people,  and  tongues," 
standing  round  the  Lamb,  and,  with  one  voice,  as- 
cribing all  praise  to  Him.  Thus  the  three  scriptures 
may  be  read  in  most  interesting  and  profitable  con- 
nection. In  Genesis  xi,  God  gives  various  tongues 
as  an  expression  of  His  judgment ;  in  Acts  ii,  He 
gives  various  tongues  as  an  expression  of  grace ; 
and  in  Rev.  vii,  we  see  all  those  tongues  gathered 
round  the  Lamb  in  glory.  How  much  better  it  is, 
therefore,  to  find  our  place  in  God's  association  than 
in  man's  !  The  former  ends  in  glory,  the  latter  in 
confusion ;  the  former  is  carried  forward  by  the 
energy  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  latter  by  the  unhal- 
lowed energy  of  fallen  man ;  the  former  has  for  its 
object  the  exaltation  of  Christ,  the  latter  has  for  its 
object  the  exaltation  of  man,  in  some  way  or  other. 

Finally,  I  would  say,  that  all  who  sincerely  desire 
to  know  the  true  character,  object  and  issue  of  hu- 
man associations,  should  read  the  opening  verses  of 
Genesis  xi ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  all  who  desire 
to  know  the  excellency,  the  beauty,  the  power,  the 
enduring  character  of  divine  association,  should  look 
at  that  hoty,  living,  heavenly  corporation,  which  is 
called,  in  the  New  Testament,  the  Church  of  the  liv- 
ing God— the  body  of  Christ — the  bride  of  the  Lamb. 


CHAPTER    XI.  121 

May  the  Lord  enable  us  to  look  at  and  apprehend 
all  these  things,  in  the  power  of  faith ;  for  only  in 
this  way  can  they  profit  our  souls.  Points  of  truth 
however  interesting,  scriptural  knowledge  however 
profound  and  extensive,  biblical  criticism  however 
accurate  and  valuable,  may  all  leave  the  heart  bar- 
ren and  the  affections  cold.  We  want  to  find  Christ 
in  the  Word ;  and,  having  found  Him,  to  feed  on 
Him  by  faith.  This  would  impart  freshness,  unction, 
power,  vitality,  energy  and  intensity,  all  of  which 
we  deeply  stand  in  need  of  in  this  day  of  freezing 
formalism.  What  is  the  value  of  a  chilling  ortho- 
doxy without  a  living  Christ,  known  in  all  His 
powerful,  personal  attractions  ?  No  doubt,  sound 
doctrine  is  immensely  important, — every  faithful 
servant  of  Christ  will  feel  himself  imperatively  called 
upon  to  "hold  fast  the  form  of  sound  words"  ; — 
but,  after  all,  a  living  Christ  is  the  very  soul  and 
life — the  joints  and  marrow — the  sinews  and  arter- 
ies— the  essence  and  substance  of  sound  doctrine. 
May  we,  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  see  more 
beauty  and  preciousness  in  Christ,  and  thus  be 
weaned  from  the  spirit  and  principles  of  Babylon. 

We  shall,  God  willing,  consider  the  remainder  of 
chapter  xi  in  the  next  section. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

THE  book  of  Genesis  is,  for  the  most  part,  taken 
up  with  the  history  of  seven  men,  namely, 
Abel,  Enoch,  Noah,  Abraham,  Isaac,  Jacob  and 
Joseph.  There  is,  I  doubt  not,  a  specific  line  of 
truth  brought  out  in  connection  with  each  of  those 
men.  Thus,  for  example,  in  Abel  we  have  the  great 
foundation- truth  of  man's  coming  to  God,  in  the 
way  of  atonement— atonement  apprehended  by  faith. 
In  Enoch,  we  have  the  proper  portion  and  hope  of 
the  heavenly  family ;  while  Noah  presents  to  us  the 
destiny  of  the  earthly  family.  Enoch  was  taken  to 
heaven  before  the  judgment  came  ;  Noah  was  carried 
through  the  judgment  into  a  restored  earth.  Thus, 
in  each,  w^e  have  a  distinct  character  of  truth,  and, 
as  a  consequence,  a  distinct  phase  of  faith.  My 
reader  can  pursue  the  subject  fully  in  connection 
with  the  eleventh  of  Hebrews ;  and  I  feel  assured 
he  will  find  much  interest  and  profit  in  so  doing. 
We  shall  now  proceed  with  our  immediate  theme, 
namely,  the  call  of  Abraham. 

By  comparing  chapter  xii.  1,  chapter  xi.  31,  with 
Acts  vii.  2-4,  we  learn  a  truth  of  immense  practical 
value  to  the  soul.  u  The  Lord  had  said  unto  Abram, 
4  Get  thee  out  of  thy  country,  and  from  thy  kindred, 
and  from  thy  father's  house,  unto  a  land  that  I  will 
show  thee.'"  (Chap.  xii.  1.)  Such  was  the  com- 
munication made  to  Abraham — a  communication  of 


CHAPTER    XII.  123 

the  most  definite  character,  designed  of  God  to  act 
upon  Abraham's  heart  and  conscience.  "The  God 
of  glory  appeared  unto  our  father  Abraham,  when 
lie  was  in  Mesopotamia,  before  he  dwelt  in  Charran, 
and  said  unto  him,  'Get  thee  out  of  thy  country, 
and  from  thy  kindred,  and  come  into  a  land  that  I 
shall  show  thee.'  Then  went  he  forth  out  of  the 
land  of  the  Chaldeans,  and  dwelt  in  Charran  (or 
Haran)  ;  and  from 'thence,  ivhen  his  father  was  dead, 
he  removed  him  into  this  land  wherein  ye  now  dwell.'* 
(Acts  vii.  2-4.)  The  result  of  this  communication 
is  given  in  chapter  xi.  31, — "And  Terah  took  Abram 
his  son,  and  Lot  the  son  of  Haran,  his  son's  son, 
and  Sarai  his  daughter-in-law,  his  son  Abram's  wife  ; 
and  they  went  forth  with  them  from  Ur  of  the  Chal- 
dees,  to  go  into  the  land  of  Canaan :  and  they  came 

unto  Haran,  and  dwelt  there and  Terah 

died  in  Haran." 

From  all  'these  passages  taken  together,  wre  learn 
that  the  ties  of  nature  hindered  the  full  response  of 
Abraham's  soul  to  the  call  of  God.  Though  called 
to  Canaan,  he  nevertheless  tarried  at  Haran  till  na- 
ture's tie  was  snapped  by  death,  and  then,  With  un- 
impeded step,  he  made  his  way  to  the  place  to  which 
"the  God  of  glory"  had  called  him.  This  is  full  of 
meaning.  The  influences  of  nature  are  ever  hostile 
to  the  full  realization  and  practical  power  of  "the 
calling  of  God."  We  are  sadly  prone  to  take  lower 
ground  than  that  which  the  divine  call  would  set 
before  us.  It  needs  great  simplicity  and  integrity 
of  faith  to  enable  the  soul  to  rise  to  the  height  of 


124  GENESIS. 

God's  thoughts,  and  to  make  our  own  of  that  which 
He  reveals. 

The  apostle's  prayer (Eph.i.  15-22.)  demonstrates 
how  fully  he,  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  entered  into  the 
difficulty  with  which  the  Church  would  ever  have  to 
contend,  in  seeking  to  apprehend  "the  hope  of  God's 
catting,  and  the  riches  of  the  glory  of  His  inheritance 
in  the  saints;"  because,  evidently,  if  we  fail  to 
apprehend  the  calling,  we  cannot  "walk  worthy" 
thereof.  I  must  know  where  I  am  called  to  go,  be- 
fore I  can  go  thither.  Had  Abraham's  soul  been 
fully  under  the  power  of  the  truth  that  "God's  call- 
ing" was  to  Canaan,  and  that  there,  too,  lay  "his 
inheritance,"  he  could  not  have  remained  in  Charran. 
And  so  with  us.  If  we  are  led  by  the  Holy  Ghost 
into  the  understanding  of  the  truth,  that  we  are 
called  with  a  heavenly  calling, — that  our  home,  our 
portion,  our  hope,  our  inheritance,  are  all  above, 
"where  Christ  sitteth  at  God's  right  hand,"  we 
could  never  be  satisfied  to  maintain  a  standing,  seek 
a  name,  or  lay  up  an  inheritance,  on  the  earth. 
The  two  things  are  incompatible:  this  is  the  true 
way  to  look  at  the  matter.  TJie  heavenly  calling  is 
not  an  empty  dogma,  a  powerless  theory,  nor  a  crude 
speculation.  It  is  either  a  divine  reality,  or  it  is  ab- 
solutely nothing.  Was  Abraham's  call  to  Canaan  a 
speculation  ? — was  it  a  mere  theory  about  which  he 
might  talk  or  argue,  while,  at  the  same  time,  he  con- 
tinued in  Charran  ?  Assuredly  not.  It  was  a  truth 
— a  divine  truth — a  powerfully  practical  truth.  He 
was  called  to  Canaan,  and  God  could  not  possibly 


CHAPTER   XII.  125 

sanction  his  stopping  short  thereof.  Thus  it  was 
with  Abraham,  and  thus  it  is  with  us.  If  we  would 
enjoy  the  divine  sanction  and  the  divine  presence, 
we  must  be  seeking,  by  faith,  to  act  upon  the  divine 
call.  That  is  to  say,  we  must  seek  to  reach,  in  ex- 
perience, in  practice,  and  moral  character,  the  point 
to  which  God  has  called  us,  and  that  point  is,  full 
fellowship  with  His  own  Son — fellowship  with  Him 
in  His  rejection  below,  fellowship  with  Him  in  His 
acceptance  above.  , 

But  as,  in  Abraham's  case,  it  was  death  that  broke 
the  link  by  which  nature  bound  him  to  Charran,  so, 
in  our  case,  it  is  death  which  breaks  the  link  by 
which  nature  ties  us  down  to  this  present  world. 
We  must  realize  the  truth  that  we  have  died  in 
Christ,  our  Head  and  Representative, — that  our 
place  in  nature,  and  in  the  world,  is  amongst  the 
things  that  were, — that  the  cross  of  Christ  is  to  us 
what  the  Red  Sea  was  to  Israel,  namely,  that  which 
separates  us  forever  from  the  land  of  death  and 
judgment.  Thus  only  shall  we  be  able  to  walk,  in 
any  measure,  "worthy  of  the  calling  wherewith  wre 
are  called" — our  high,  our  holy,  our  heavenly  call- 
ing— our  "calling  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus." 

And  here  I  would  dwell,  for  a  little,  on  the  cross 
of  Christ,  in  its  two  grand,  fundamental  phases  ;  or, 
in  other  words,  the  cross  as  the  basis  of  our  worship 
and  our  discipleship,  our  peace  and  our  testimony, 
our  relation  with  God  and  our  relation  with  the 
world.  If,  as  a  convicted  sinner,  I  look  at  the  cross 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  I  behold  in  it  the  everlast- 


126  GENESIS. 

ing  foundation  of  my  peace.  I  see  my  "sin"  put 
away,  as  to  the  root  or  principle  thereof,  and  I  see 
my  "sins"  borne.  I  see  God  to  be,  in  very  deed, 
"for  me,"  and  that,  moreover,  in  the  very  condition 
in.  which  my  convicted  conscience  tells  me  I  am. 
The  cross  unfolds  God  as  the  sinner's  Friend, — it 
reveals  Him  in  that  most  wondrous  character,  as  the 
Righteous  Justifier  of  the  most  ungodly  sinner. 
Creation  never  could  do  this:  providence  never 
could  do  this.  Therein  I  may  se§  God's  power,  His 
majesty,  and  His  wisdom:  but  what  if  all  these 
things  should  be  ranged  against  me  ?  Looked  at  in 
themselves,  abstractedly,  they  wTould  be  so,  for  I  am 
a  sinner;  and  power,  majesty,  and  wisdom,  could 
not  put  away  my  sin,  nor  justify  God  in  receiving  me. 
The  introduction  of  the  cross,  however,  changes 
the  aspect  of  things  entirely.  There  I  find  God 
dealing  with  sin  in  such  a  manner  as  to  glorify  Him- 
self infinitely.  There  I  see  the  magnificent  display 
and  perfect  harmony  of  all  the  divine  attributes.  I 
see  love,  and  such  love  as  captivates  and  assures  my 
heart,  and  weans  it,  in  proportion  as  I  realize  it, 
from  every  other  object.  I  see  wisdom,  and  such 
wisdom  as  baffles  devils  and  astonishes  angels.  I 
see  power,  and  such  power  as  bears  down  all  oppo- 
sition. I  see  holiness,  and  such  holiness  as  repulses 
sin  to  the  very  furthest  point  of  the  moral  universe, 
and  gives  the  most  intense  expression  of  God's  ab- 
horrence thereof  that  could  possibly  be  given.  I  see 
grace,  and  such  grace  as  sets  the  sinner  in  the  very 
presence  of  God — yea,  puts  him  into  His  bosom. 


CHAPTKR 

Where  could  I  see  all  these  thift^^tyi£jta^tbe  cross 
Nowhere  else.  Look  where  you  please,  and  y>i 
cannot  find  aught*  that  so  blessedly  combines  those 
two  great  points,  namely,  "  glory  to  God  in  the 
highest,"  and  "on  earth  peace." 

How  precious,  therefore,  is  the  cross,  in  this  its 
first  phase,  as  the  basis  of  the  sinner's  peace,  the 
basis  of  his  worship,  and  the  basis  of  his  eternal 
relationship  with  the  God  who  is  there  so  blessedly 
and  so  gloriously  revealed  ?  How  precious  to  God, 
as  furnishing  Him  with  a  righteous  ground  on  which 
to  go  in  the  full  display  of  all  His  matchless  perfec- 
tions, and  in  His  most  gracious  dealings  with  the 
sinner  !  So  precious  is  it  to  God,  that,  as  a  recent 
writer  has  well  remarked,  "All  that  Pie  has  said — all 
that  He  has  done,  from  the  very  beginning,  indicates 
that  it  was  ever  uppermost  in  His  heart.  And  no 
wonder  !  His  dear  and  well-beloved  Son  was  to 
hang  there,  between  heaven  and  earth,  the  object  of 
all  the  shame  and  suffering  that  men  and  devils 
could  heap  upon  Him,  because  He  loved  to  do  His 
Father's  will,  and  redeem  the  children  of  His  grace. 
It  will  be  the  grand  centre  of  attraction,  as  the  full- 
est expression  of  His  love,  throughout  eternity." 

Then,  as  the  basis  of  our  practical  discipleship 
and  testimony,  the  cross  demands  our  most  profound 
consideration.  In  this  aspect  of  it,  I  need  hardly 
say,  it  is  as  perfect  as  in  the  former.  The  same 
cross  which  connects  me  with  God,  has  separated 
me  from  the  world.  A  dead  man  is,  evidently,  done 
with  the  world ;  and  hence,  the  believer,  having  died 


128  GENESIS. 

in  Christ,  is  done  with  the  world ;  and,  having  risen 
with  Christ,  is  connected  with  God,  in  the  power  of 
a  new  life — a  new  nature.  Beingf  thus  inseparably 
linked  with  Christ,  he,  of  necessity,  participates  in 
His  acceptance  with  God,  and  in  His  rejection  by 
the  world.  The  two  things  go  together.  The  for- 
mer makes  him  a  worshiper  and  a  citizen  in  heaven, 
the  latter  makes  him  a  witness  and  a  stranger  on 
.earth.  That  brings  him  inside  the  veil:  this  puts 
him  outside  the  camp.  The  one  is  as  perfect  as  the 
other.  If  the  cross  has  come  between  me  and  my 
sins,  it  has  just.as  really  come  between  me  and  the 
world.  In  the  former  case,  it  puts  me  into  the  place 
of  peace  with  God  ;  in  the  latter,  it  puts  me  into  the 
place  of  hostility  with  the  world,  i.  e.,  in  a  moral 
point  of  view ;  though,  in  another  sense,  it  makes 
me  the  patient,  humble  witness  of  that  precious, 
unfathomable,  eternal  grace  which  is  set  forth  in  the 
cross. 

Now  the  believer  should  clearly  understand,  and 
rightly  distinguish  between,  both  the  above  phases 
of  the  cross  of  Christ.  He  should  not  profess  to 
enjoy  the  one,  .while  he  refuses  to  enter  into  the 
other.  If  his  ear  is  open  to  hear  Christ's  voice 
within  the  vail,  it  should  be  open  also  to  hear  His 
voice  outside  the  camp; — if  he  enters  into  the 
atonement  which  the  cross  has  accomplished,  he 
should  also  realize  the  rejection  which  it  necessarily 
involves.  The  former  flows  out  of  the  part  which 
God  had  in  the  cross ;  the  latter,  out  of  the  part 
which  man  had  therein.  It  is  our  happy  privilege, 


CHAPTER    XII.  129 

not  only  to  be  done  with  our  sins,  but  to  be  done 
with  tlTe  world  also.  All  this  is  involved  in  the  doc- 
trine of  the  cross.  Well,  therefore,  might  the  apostle 
say,  "God  forbid  that  I  should  glory,  save  in  the 
cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  by  which  the  world 
is  crucified  unto  me,  and  I  unto  the  world."  Paul 
looked  upon  the  world  as  a  thing  which  ought  to  be 
nailed  to  the  cross  ;  and  the  world,  in  having  cruci- 
fied Christ,  had  crucified  all  who  belonged  to  Him. 
Hence  there  is  a  double  crucifixion,  as  regards  the 
believer  and  the  world  ;  and  were  this  fully  entered 
into,  it  would  prove  the  utter  impossibility  of  ever 
amalgamating  the  two.  Beloved  reader,  let  us 
deeply,  honestly,  and  prayerfully  ponder  these 
things ;  and  may  the  Holy  Ghost  give  us  the  ability 
to  enter  into  the  full  practical  power  of  both  the 
phases  of  the  cross  of  Christ. 

We  shall  now  return  to  our  theme. 

We  are  not  told  how  long  Abraham  tarried  at 
Haran ;  yet  God  graciously  waited  on  His  servant 
until,  freed  from  nature's  clog,  he  could  fully  obey 
His  command.  There  was,  however,  no  accommo- 
dation of  that  command  to  the  circumstances  of 
nature.  This  would  never  do.  God  loves  His  serv- 
ants too  well  to  deprive  them  of  the  full  blessedness 
of  entire  obedience.  There  was  no  fresh  revelation 
to  Abraham's  soul  during  the  time  of  his  sojourn  in 
Htiran.  It  is  well  to  see  this.  We  must  act  up  to 
the  light  already  communicated,  and  then  God  will 
give  us  more.  "To  him  that  hath  shall  more  be 
given," — this  is  God's  principle.  Still,  we  must  re- 


130  GENESIS. 

member  that  God  will  never  drag  us  along  the  path 
of  true-hearted  discipleship.  This  would  greatly 
lack  the  moral  excellency  which  characterizes  all 
the  ways  of  God.  He  does  not  drag,  but  draw,  us 
along  the  path  which  leads  to  ineffable  blessedness 
in  Himself;  and  if  we  do  not  see  that  it  is  for  our 
real  advantage  to  break  through  all  the  barriers  of 
nature,  in  order  to  respond  to  God's  call,  we  forsake 
our  own  mercies.  But,  alas  !  our  hearts  little  enter 
into  this.  We  begin  to  calculate  about  the  sacri- 
fices, the  hindrances,  and  the  difficulties,  instead  of 
bounding  along  the  path,  in  eagerness  of  soul,  as 
knowing  and  loving  the  One  whose  call  has  sounded 
in  our  ears. 

There  is  much  true  blessing  to  the  soul  in  every 
step  of  obedience  ;  for  obedience  is  the  fruit  of  faith, 
and  faith  puts  us  into  living  association  and  com- 
munion with  God  Himself.  Looking  at  obedience 
in  this  light,  we  can  easily  sec  how  distinctly  it  is 
marked  off,  in  every  feature  of  it,  from  legality. 
This  latter  sets  a  man,  with  the  entire  burden  of  his 
sins  on  him,  to  serve  God  by  keeping  the  law ; 
hence,  the  soul  is  kept  in  constant  torture,  and,  so 
far  from  running  in  the  path  of  obedience,  it  has  not 
even  taken  the  very  first  step.  True  obedience,  on 
the  contrary,  is  simply  the  manifestation  or  outflow 
of  a  new  nature,  communicated  in  grace.  To  this 
new  nature  God  graciously  imparts  precepts  for  its 
guidance  ;  and  it  is  perfectly  certain  that  the  divine 
nature,  guided  by  the  divine  precepts,  can  never,  by 
any  possibility,  resolve  itself  into  legality.  What 


CHAPTER    XII.  131 

constitutes  legality,  is,  the  old  nature  taking  up 
God's  precepts  and  assaying  to  carry  them  out.  To 
attempt  to  regulate  man's  fallen  nature,  by  God's 
pure  and  holy  law,  is  as  useless  and  absurd  as  any- 
thing can  be.  How  could  fallen  nature  breathe  an 
atmosphere  so  pure  ?  Impossible.  Both  the  atmos- 
phere and  the  nature  must  be  divine. 

But  not  only  does  the  blessed  God  impart  a  divine 
nature  to  the  believer,  and  guide  that  nature  by  His 
heavenly  precepts,  He  also  sets  before  it  suited  hopes 
and  expectations.  Thus,  in  Abraham's  case,  "the 
God  of  glory  appeared  unto  him."  And  for  what 
purpose  ?  To  set  before  his  soul's  vision  an  attract- 
ive object — "a  land  that  /  will  show  thee."  This 
was  not  compulsion,  but  attraction.  God's  land 
was,  in  the  judgment  of  the  new  nature — the  judg- 
ment of  faith— far  better  than  Ur,  or  Charran :  and 
albeit,  he  had  not  seen  the  land,  yet,  inasmuch  as  it 
was  God's  land,  faith  judged  it  to  be  worth  having, 
and  not  only  worth  having,  but  also  fully  worth  the 
surrender  of  present  things.  Hence,  we  read,  "by 
faith  Abraham,  when  he  was  called  to  go  put  into  a 
place  which  he  should  after  receive  as  an  inheritance, 
obeyed ;  and  he  went  out,  not  knowing  whither  he 
went."  That  is  to  say,  "he  walked  by  faith,  not  by 
sight."  Though  he  had  not  seen  with  his  eyes,  he 
believed  with  his  heart,  and  faith  became  the  great 
moving  spring  in  his  soul.  Faith  rests  on  a  far  more 
solid  ground  than  the  evidence  of  our  senses,  and 
that  is,  the  Word  of  God.  Our  senses  may  deceive 
us,  but  God's  Word  never  can, 


132  GENESIS. 

Now,  the  entire  truth  of  the  divine  nature,  to- 
gether with  the  precepts  which  guide,  and  the  hopes 
which  animate,  it — the  whole  of  the  divine  doctrine 
respecting  these  things,  is  completely  thrown  over- 
board by  the  system  of  legalism.  The  legalist 
teaches  that  we  must  surrender  earth  in  order  to 
get  heaven.  But  how  can  fallen  nature  surrender 
that  to  which  it  is  allied  ?  How  can  it  be  attracted 
by  that  in  which  it  sees  no  charms  ?  Heaven  has 
no  charms  for  nature  ;  yea,  it  is  the  very  last  place 
it  would  like  to  be  found  in.  Nature  has  no  taste 
for  heaven,  its  occupations,  or  its  occupants.  Were 
it  possible  for  nature  to  find  itself  there,  it  would  be 
miserable.  Thus,  then,  nature  has  no  ability  to 
surrender  earth,  and  no  desire  to  get  heaven.  True, 
it  would  be  glad  to  escape  hell  and  its  ineffable  tor- 
ment, gloom  and  misery ;  but  the  desire  to  escape 
hell,  and  the  desire  to  get  heaven,  spring  from  two 
very  different  sources.  The  former  may  exist  in  the 
old  nature ;  the  latter  can  only  be  found  in  the  new. 
Were  there  no  "lake  of  fire,"  and  no  "worm"  in 
hell,  nature  would  not  so  shrink  from  it.  The  same 
principle  holds  good  in  reference  to  all  of  nature's 
pursuits  and  desires.  The  legalist  teaches  that  we 
must  give  up  sin  before  we  can  get  righteousness. 
But  nature  cannot  give  up  sin  ;  and  as  to  righteous- 
ness, it  absolutely  hates  it.  True,  it  would  like  a 
certain  amount  of  religion  ;  but  it  is  onl}r  with  the 
idea  that  religion  will  preserve  it  from  hell  fire.  It 
does  not  love  religion  because  of  its  introducing  the 
soul  to  the  present  enjoyment  of  God  and  His  ways. 


CHAPTER    XII.  133 

How  different  from  all  this  miserable  system  of 
legalism,  in  every  phase  thereof,  is  "the  gospel  of 
the  glory  of  the  blessed  God ' ' !  This  gospel  reveals 
God  Himself  coming  down  in  perfect  grace,  and 
putting  away  sin  by  the  sacrifice  of  the  cross ;  put- 
ting it  away,  in  the  most  absolute  manner,  on  the 
ground  of  eternal  righteousness,  inasmuch  as  Christ 
suffered  for  it,  having  been  made  sin  for  us.  And 
not  only  is  God  seen  putting  away  sin,  but  also  im- 
parting a  new  life,  even  the  risen  life  of  His  own 
risen,  exalted,  and  glorified  Son ;  which  life  every 
true  believer  possesses,  in  virtue  of  being  linked,  in 
God's  eternal  counsels,  with  Him  who  was  nailed  to 
the  cross,  but  is  now  on  the  throne  of  the  Majesty 
in  the  heavens.  This  nature,  as  we  have  remarked, 
He  graciously  guides  by  the  precepts  of  His  holy 
Word,  applied  in  power  by  the  Holy  Ghost.  He 
also  animates  it  by  the  presentation  of  indestructible 
hopes.  He  reveals,  in  the  distance,  "the  hope  of 
glory ' ' — "  a  city  which  hath  foundations ' ' — ' '  a  bet- 
ter country,  that  is,  a  heavenly" — the  "many  man- 
sions" of  the  Father's  house  on  high — "golden 
harps" — "green  palms"  and  "white  robes" — "a 
kingdom  which  cannot  be  moved" — everlasting  as- 
sociation with  Himself,  in  those  regions  of  bliss  and 
light,  where  sorrow  and  darkness  can  never  enter — 
the  unspeakable  privilege  of  being  led,  throughout 
the  countless  ages  of  eternity,  "beside  the  still 
waters,  and  through  the  green  pastures"  of  redeem- 
ing love.  How  different  is  all  this  from  the  legalist's 
notion  !  Instead  of  calling  upon  me  to  educate  and 


134  GENESIS. 

manage,  by  the  dogmas  of  systematic  religion,  an 
irremediably  corrupt  nature,  in  order  that  thereby  I 
may  surrender  an  earth  that  I  love,  and  attain  to  a 
heaven  which  I  hate,  He,  in  infinite  grace,  and  on 
the  ground  of  Christ's  accomplished  sacrifice,  be- 
stows upon  me  a  nature  which  can  enjoy  heaven, 
and  a  heaven  for  that  nature  to  enjoy ;  and  not  only 
a  heaven,  but  Himself  the  unfailing  spring  of  all 
heaven's  joy. 

Such  is  God's  most  excellent  way.  Thus  He  dealt 
with  Abraham,  thus  He  dealt  with  Saul  of  Tarsus, 
thus  He  deals  with  us.  The  God  of  glory  showed 
Abraham  a  better  country  than  Ur  or  Charran.  He 
showed  Saul  of  Tarsus  a  glory  so  bright,  that  it 
closed  his  eyes  to  all  earth's  brightest  glories,  and 
caused  him  to  count  them  all  "but  dung,"  that  He 
might  win  that  blessed  One  wrho  had  appeared  to 
him,  and  whose  voice  had  spoken  to  his  inmost  soul. 
He  saw  a  heavenly  Christ  in  glory ;  and,  throughout 
the  remainder  of  his  course,  notwithstanding  the 
weakness  of  the  earthen  vessel,  that  heavenly  Christ 
and  that  heavenly  glory  engrossed  his  whole  soul. 

"And  Abram  passed  through  the  land  unto  the 
place  of  Sichem,  unto  the  plain  of  Moreh.  And  the 
Canaanite  was  then  in  the  land."  The  presence  of 
the  Canaanite  in  God's  land  would  necessarily  prove 
a  trial  to  Abraham.  It  would  be  a  demand  upon 
his  faith  and  hope,  an  exercise  of  heart,  a  trial  of 
patience.  He  had  left  Ur  and  Charran  behind,  and 
come  into  the  country  of  which  ' '  the  God  of  glory ' ' 
had  spoken  to  him,  and  there  he  finds  "the  Canaan- 


CHAPTER    XII.  l.'>5 

itc."  But  there,  too,  he  finds  the  Lord,— "And 
the  Lord  appeared  unto  Abram,  and  said,  'Unto 
thy  seed  will  I  give  this  land.'  '  The  connection 
between  the  two  statements  is  beautiful  and  touch- 
ing. 

"The  Canaanite  was  then  in  the  land,"  and  lest 
Abraham's  eye  should  rest  upon  the  Canaanite,  the 
present  possessor  of  the  land,  Jehovah  appears  to 
him  as  the  One  who  was  going  to  give  the  land  to 
him  and  to  his  seed  forever.  Thus  Abraham  was 
taken  up  with  the  Lord,  and  not  with  the  Canaanite. 
This  is  full  of  instruction  for  us.  The  Canaanite  in 
the  land  is  the  expression  of  the  power  of  Satan ; 
but,  instead  of  being  occupied  with  Satan's  power 
to  keep  us  out  of  the  inheritance,  we  are  called  to 
apprehend  Christ's  power  to  bring  us  in.  "We 
wrestle  not  with  flesh  and  blood,  ....  but  with 
spiritual  wickedness  in  the  heavenlies."  The  very 
sphere  into  which  we  are  called  is  the  sphere  of  our 
conflict.  Should  this  terrify  us  ?  By  no  means. 
We  have  Christ  there — a  victorious  Christ,  in  whom 
we  are  "more  than  conquerors."  Hence,  instead 
of  indulging  "a  spirit  of  fear,"  we  cultivate  a  spirit 
of  worship.  "And  there  builded  he  an  altar  unto 
the  Lord,  who  appeared  unto  him."  "And  he  re- 
moved from  thence  unto  a  mountain  on  the  east  of 
Bethel,  and  pitched  his  tent."  The  altar  and  the 
tent  give  us  the  two  great  features  of  Abraham's 
character.  A  worshiper  of  God,  a  stranger  in  the 
world — most  blessed  characteristics  !  Having  no- 
thing on  earth — having  our  all  in  God.  Abraham 
10 


136  GENESIS. 

had  "not  so  much  as  to  set  his  foot  upon  ; "  but  he 
had  God  to  enjoy,  and  that  was  enough. 

However,  faith  has  its  trials,  as  well  as  its  answers. 
It  is  not  to  be  imagined  that  the  man  of  faith,  hav- 
ing pushed  out  from  the  shore  of  circumstances, 
finds  it  all  smooth  and  easy  sailing.  By  no  means. 
Again  and  again,  he  is  called  to  encounter  rough 
seas  and  stormy  skies ;  but  it  is  all  graciously  de- 
signed to  lead  him  into  deeper  and  more  matured 
experience  of  what  God  is  to  the  heart  that  confides 
in  Him.  Were  the  sky  always  without  a  cloud,  and 
the  ocean  without  a  ripple,  the  believer  would  not 
know  so  well  the  God  with  whom  he  has  to  do ; 
for,  alas  !  we  know  how  prone  the  heart  is  to  mis- 
take the  peace  of  circumstances  for  the  peace  of 
God.  When  everything  is  going  on  smoothly  and 
pleasantry, — our  property  safe,  our  business  pros- 
perous, our  children  and  servants  cariying  them- 
selves agreeably,  our  residence  comfortable,  our 
health  excellent, — everything,  in  short,  just  to  our 
mind,  how  apt  we  are  to  mistake  the  peace  which 
reposes  upon  such  circumstances,  for  that  peace 
which  flows  from  the  realized  presence  of  Christ. 
The  Lord  knows  this ;  and  therefore  He  comes  in, 
in  one  way  or  another,  and  stirs  up  the  nest,  that  is, 
if  we  are  found  nestling  in  circumstances,  instead 
of  in  Himself. 

But,  again,  we  are  frequently  led  to  judge  of  the 
Tightness  of  a  path  by  its  exemption  from  trial,  and 
vise  versa.  This  is  a  great  mistake.  The  path  of 
obedience  may  often  be  found  most  trying  to  flesh 


CHAPTER    XII.  137 

and  blood.  Thus,  in  Abraham's  ease,  he  was  not 
only  called  to  encounter  the  Canaanite,  in  the  place 
to  which  God  had  called  him,  but  there  was  also  "a 
famine  in  the  land."  Should  he,  therefore,  have 
concluded  that  he  was  not  in  his  right  place  ?  As- 
suredly not.  That  would  have  been  to  judge  accord- 
ing to  the  sight  of  his  eyes,  the  very  thing  which 
faith  never  does.  No  doubt  it  was  a  deep  trial  to 
the  heart,  an  inexplicable  puzzle  to  nature  ;  but  to 
faith  it  was  all  plain  and  eas}\  When  Paul  was 
called  into  Macedonia,  almost  the  first  thing  he  had 
to  encounter  was  the  prison  at  Philippi.  This,  to 
a  heart  out  of  communion,  would  have  seemed  a 
death-blow  to  the  entire  mission.  But  Paul  never 
questioned  the  rightness  of  his  position ;  he  was 
enabled  to  "sing  praises"  in  the  midst  of  it  all,  as- 
sured that  everything  was  just  as  it  should  be :  and 
so  it  was ;  for  in  the  prison  of  Philippi  was  one  of 
God's  vessels  of  mercy,  who  could  not,  humanly 
speaking,  have  heard  the  gospel,  had  not  the  preach- 
ers of  it  been  thrust  into  the  very  place  where  he 
was.  The  devil  was  made,  in  spite  of  himself,  the 
instrument  of  sending  the  gospel  to  the  ears  of  one 
of  God's  elect. 

Now,  Abraham  should  have  reasoned  in  the  same 
way  in  reference  to  the  famine.  He  was  in  the  very 
place  in  which  God  had  set  him  ;  and,  evidently,  he 
received  no  direction  to  leave  it.  True,  the  famine 
was  there  ;  and,  moreover,  Egypt  was  at  hand,  offer- 
ing deliverance  from  pressure ;  still  the  path  of 
God's  servant  was  plain.  It  is  better  to  starve  in 


138  GENESIS.     . 

Canaan,  if  it  should  be  so,  than  live  in  luxury  in 
Egypt, — it  is  better  far  to  suffer  in  God's  path,  than 
be  at  ease  in  Satan's, — it  is  better  to  be  poor  with 
Christ,  than  rich  without  Him.  "Abraham  had 
sheep,  and  oxen,  and  he-asses,  and  men-servants, 
and  maid-servants,  and  she-asses,  and  camels." 
Substantial  proofs,  the  natural  heart  would  doubt- 
less say,  of  the  Tightness  of  his  step  in  going  down 
to  Egypt.  But,  ah  !  he  had  no  altar — no  commun- 
ion. Egypt  was  not  the  place  of  God's  presence. 
He  lost  more  than  he  gained  by  going  thither.  This 
is  ever  the  case.  Nothing  can  ever  make  up  for  the 
loss  of  our  communion  with  God.  Exemption  from 
temporary  pressure,  and  the  accession  of  the  great- 
est wealth,  are  but  poor  equivalents  for  what  one 
loses  by  diverging  a  hair's  breadth  from  the  straight 
path  of  obedience.  How  many  of  us  can  add  our 
amen  to  this  !  How  many,  in  order  to  avoid  the 
trial  and  exercise  connected  with  God's  path,  have 
slipped  aside  into  the  current  of  this  present  evil 
world,  and  thereby  brought  leanness  and  barrenness, 
heaviness  and  gloom,  into  their  souls  !  It  may  be 
they  have,  to  use  the  common  expression,  "made 
money,"  increased  their  store,  obtained  the  world's 
favor,  been  "entreated  well"  by  its  Pharaohs,  got- 
ten a  name  and  a  position  amongst  men;,  but  are 
these  a  proper  equivalent  for  joy  in  God,  commun- 
ion, liberty  of  heart,  a  pure,  uncondemning  con- 
science, a  thankful,  worshiping  spirit,  vigorous 
testimony,  and  effectual  service  ?  Alas  !  for  the 
man  that  can  think  so.  And  yet  all  the  above  in- 


CHAPTER    XII.  139 

comparable   blessings   have   been   often  sold  for  a 
little  ease,  a  little  influence,  a  little  mone}'. 

Christian  reader,  let  us  watch  against  the  ten- 
dency to  slip  aside  from  the  narrow,  yet  safe,  the 
sawe^'mes-rough,  yet  aZ«;a?/s-pleasant,  path  of  sim- 
ple, whole-hearted  obedience.  Let  ns  keep  guard — 
jealous,  careful  guard — over  "faith  and  a  pure 
conscience,"  for  which  nothing  can  compensate. 
Should  trial  come,  let  us,  instead  of  turning  aside 
into  Egypt,  wait  on  God  ;  and  thus  the  trial,  instead 
of  proving  an  occasion  of  stumbling,  will  prove  an 
opportunity  for  obedience.  Let  us,  when  tempted 
to  slip  into  the  course  of  the  world,  remember  Him 
"who  gave  Himself  for  our  sins,  that  He  might 
deliver  us  from  this  present  evil  world,  according  to 
the  will  of  God  and  our  Father."  (Gal.  i.  4.)  If 
such  was  His  love  for  us,  and  such  His  sense  of  the 
true  character  of  this  present  world,  that  He  gave 
Himself  in  order  to  deliver  us  from  it.  shall  we  deny 
Him  by  plunging  again  into  that  from  which  His 
cross  has  forever  delivered  us  ?  May  God  Almighty 
forbid !  May  He  keep  us  in  the  hollow  of  His  hand, 
and  under  the  shadow  of  His  wings,  until  we  see 
Jesus  as  He  is,  and  be  like  Him,  and  with  Him 
forever. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  opening  of  this  chapter  presents  to  us  a  sub- 
ject of  immense  interest  to  the  heart,  namely, 
the  true  character  of  divine  restoration.  When  the 
child  of  God  has,  in  any  way,  declined  in  his  spirit- 
ual condition,  and  lost  his  communion,  he  is  in  great 
clanger,  when  conscience  begins  to  work,  of  failing 
in  the  apprehension  of  divine  grace,  and  of  stopping 
short  of  the  proper  mark  of  divine  restoration. 
Now,  we  know  that  God  does  everything  in  a  way 
entirely  worthy  of  Himself.  Whether  He  creates, 
redeems,  converts,  restores,  or  provides,  He  can 
only  act  like  Himself.  What  is  worthy  of  Himself 
is,  ever  and  only,  His  standard  of  action.  This  is 
unspeakably  happy  for  us,  inasmuch  as  we  would 
ever  seek  to  "limit  the  Holy  One  of  Israel;"  and 
in  nothing  are  we  so  prone  to  limit  Him  as  in  His 
restoring  grace.  In  the  case  now  before  us,  we  see 
that  Abraham  was  not  only  delivered  out  of  Egypt, 
but  brought  back  "unto  the  place  where  his  tent 
had  been  at  the  beginning,  ....  unto  the  place 
of  the  altar  which  he  had  made  there  at  the  first : 
and  there  Abraham  called  on  the  name  of  the  Lord." 
Nothing  can  satisfy  God,  in  reference  to  a  wanderer 
or  backslider,  but  his  being  entirely  restored.  We, 
in  the  self-righteousness  of  our  hearts,  might  imag- 
ine that  such  an  one  should  take  a  lower  place  than 
that  which  he  had  formerly  occupied ;  and  so  he 


CHAPTER    XIII.  141 

should,  were  it  a  question  of  his  merit  or  his  char- 
acter ;  but  inasmuch  as  it  is  altogether  a  question 
of  grace,  it  is  God's  prerogative  to  fix  the  standard 
of  restoration  ;  and  His  standard  is  set  forth  in  the 
following  passage:  "If  thou  wilt  return,  O  Israel, 
return  to  Me."  It  is  thus  that  God  restores,  and  it 
would  be  unworthy  of  Himself  to  do  anything  else. 
He  will  either  not  restore  at  all,  or  else  restore  in 
such  a  way  as  to  magnify  and  glorify  the  riches  of 
His  grace.  Thus,  when  the  leper  was  brought  back, 
he  was  actually  conducted  "to  the  door  of  the  tab- 
ernacle of  the  congregation;"  when  the  prodigal 
returned,  he  was  set  down  at  the  table  with  his 
father ;  when  Peter  was  restored,  he  was  able  to 
stand  before  the  men  of  Israel  and  say,  "Ye  denied 
the  Holy  One  and  the  Just" — the  very  thing  which 
he  had  done  himself,  under  the  most  aggravated 
circumstances.  In  all  these  cases,  and  many  more 
which  might  be  adduced,  we  see  the  perfectness  of 
God's  restoration.  He  always  brings  the  soul  back 
to  Himself,  in  the  full  power  of  grace,  and  the  full 
confidence  of  faith.  "If  thou  wilt  return,  return 
to  Me."  "Abraham  came  unto  the  place  where  his 
tent  had  been  at  the  beginning." 

Then,  as  to  the  moral  effect  of  divine  restoration, 
it  is  most  deeply  practical.  If  legalism  gets  its 
answer  in  the  character  of  the  restoration,  antinomi- 
anism  gets  its  answer  in  the  effect  thereof.  The  re- 
stored soul  will  have  a  very  deep  and  keen  sense  of 
the  evil  from  which  it  has  been  delivered,  and  this 
will  be  evidenced  by  a  jealous,  prayerful,  holy,  and 


142  GENESIS. 

circumspect  spirit.  We  are  not  restored  in  order 
that  we  may  the  more  lightly  go  and  sin  again,  but 
rather  that  we  may  "go  and  sin  no  more."  The 
deeper  my  sense  of  the  grace  of  divine  restoration, ' 
the  deeper  will  be  my  sense  of  the  holiness  of  it  also. 
This  principle  is  taught  and  established  throughout 
all  Scripture,  but  especially  in  two  well-known  pas- 
sages, namely,  Psalms  xxiii.  3,  and  1  John  i.  9,— 
"He  restoreth  my  soul :  He  leadetli  me  in  the  paths 
of  righteousness  for  His  name's  sake."  And,  again, 
"If  we  confess  our  sins,  He  is  faithful  and  just  to 
forgive  us  our  sins,  and  to  cleanse  us  from  all  un- 
righteousness." The  proper  path  for  a  divinely- 
restored,  soul,  is  "the  path  of  righteousness."  In 
Other 'words,  having  tasted  divine  grace,  \ve  walk  in 
righteousness.  To  talk  of  grace  while  walking  in 
unrighteousness,  is,  as  the  apostle  says,  to  turn 
"the  grace  of  our  God  into  lasciviousness."  If 
"grace  reigns  through  righteousness  unto  eternal 
life,"  it  also  manifests  itself  in  righteousness,  in  the 
outflow  of  that  life.  The  grace  that  forgives  us  our 
sins,  cleanses  us  from  all  unrighteousness.  Those 
things  must  never  be  separated.  When  taken  to- 
gether, they  furnish  a  triumphant  answer  to  the 
legalism  and  antinomianism  of  the  human  heart. 

But  there  was  a  deeper  trial  for  Abraham's  heart 
than  even  the  famine,  namely,  that  arising  from  the 
company  of  one  who  evidently  was  not  walking  in 
the  energy  of  personal  faith,  nor  in  the  realization 
of  personal  responsibility.  It  seems  plain  that  Lot 
was,  from  the  very  beginning,  borne  onward  rather 


CHAPTER    XIII.  143 

by  Abraham's  influence  and  example,  than  by  his 
own  faith  in  God.  This  is  a  very  common  case.  If 
we  look  down  along  the  history  of  the  people  of 
God,  we  can  easily  see  how  that  in  every  great 
movement  produced  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  certain 
individuals  have  attached  themselves  thereto  who 
were  not  personally  participators  of  the  power  which 
had  produced  the  movement.  Such  persons  go  on 
for  a  time,  either  as  a  dead  weight  upon  the  testi- 
mony, or  an  active  hindrance  to  it.  Thus,  in  Abra- 
ham's case,  the  Lord  called  him  to  leave  his  kindred ; 
but  he  brought  his  kindred  with  him.  Terah  re- 
tarded him  in  his  movement,  until  death  took  him 
out  of  the  way :  Lot  followed  him  somewhat  further, 
until  "the  lusts  of  other  things"  overpowered  him, 
and  he  entirely  broke  down. 

The  same  thing  is  observable  in  the  great  move- 
ment of  Israel  out  of  Egypt.  UA  mixed  multitude" 
followed  them,  and  caused  much  defilement,  weak- 
ness and  sorrow  ;  for  we  read,  in  Numbers  xi,  "The 
mixed  multitude  that  was  among  them  fell  a  lusting: 
and  the  children  of  Israel  also  wept  again,  and  said, 
'Who  shall  give  us  flesh  to  eat.'  "  So,  also,  in  the 
early  days  of  the  Church, — and  not  only  so,  but  in 
every  revival  which  has  taken  place  therein  down  to 
the  present  day, — many  have  been  acted  upon  by 
various  influences,  which,  not  being  divine,  proved 
evanescent ;  and  the  persons  so  acted  upon,  sooner 
or  later  gave  way,  and  found  their  proper  level. 
Nothing  will  endure  but  that  which  is  of  God.  I 
must  realize  the  link  between  me  and  the  living  God ; 


144:  GENESIS. 

I  must  know  myself  as  one  called  of  Him  into  the 
position  which  I  occupy,  else  I  shall  have  no  stabil- 
it}^,  and  exhibit  no  consistency  therein.  It  will  not 
do  to  follow  in  the  track  of  other  people  merely  be- 
cause it  is  their  track.  God  will  graciously  give 
each  a  path  to  walk  in,  a  sphere  to  move  in,  and  a 
responsibility  to  fulfill ;  and  we  are  bound  to  know 
our  calling  and  the  functions  thereof,  that,  by  His 
grace  ministered  to  our  souls  daily,  we  may  work 
therein  effectually,  to  His  glory.  It  matters  not 
what  our  measure  may  be,  provided  it  be  what  God 
hath  dealt  to  us.  We  may  have  "five  talents,"  or 
we  may  have  but  "one  ;  "  still,  if  we  use  the  "one," 
with  our  eye  fixed  on  the  Master,  we  shall  just  be 
as  sure  to  hear  from  His  gracious  lips  the  words, 
"Well  done,"  as  if  we  had  used  the  "five."  This 
is  encouraging.  Paul,  Peter,  James,  and  John  had 
each  his  peculiar  measure — his  specific  ministry; 
and  so  with  all :  none  needs  to  interfere  with  another. 
A  carpenter  has  a  saw  and  a  plane,  a  hammer  and  a 
chisel,  and  he  uses  each  as  he  needs  it.  Nothing 
can  be  more  worthless  than  imitation.  If,  in  the 
natural  world,  we  look  at  the  various  orders  of  crea- 
tion, we  see  no  imitation.  All  have  their  proper 
sphere,  their  proper  functions.  And  if  it  be  thus  in 
the  natural  world,  how  much  more  in  the  spiritual. 
The  field  is  wide  enough  for  all.  In  every  house 
there  are  vessels  of  various  sizes  and  various  shapes : 
the  master  wants  them  all. 

Let  us,  therefore,  my  beloved  reader,  search  and 
see  whether  we  are  walking  under  a  divine  or  a  hu- 


CHAPTER    XIII.  145 

man  influence  ;  whether  our  faith  stands  in  the  wis- 
dom of  man,  or  in  the  power  of  God ;  whether  we 
are  doing  things  because  others  have  done  them,  or 
because  the  Lord  has  called  us  to  do  them  ;  whether 
we  are  merely  propped  up  by  the  example  and  influ- 
ence of  our  fellow,  or  sustained  by  personal  faith  in 
God.  These  are  serious  inquiries.  It  is,  no  doubt, 
a  happy  privilege  to  enjoy  the  fellowship  of  our 
brethren ;  but  if  we  are  propped  up  by  them,  we 
shall  soon  make  shipwreck.  So  also,  if  we  go  be- 
yond our  measure,  our  action  will  be  strained  and 
unsightly,  uneasy  and  unnatural.  It  is  very  easy  to 
see  when  a  man  is  working  in  his  place,  and  accord- 
ing to  his  measure.  All  affectation,  assumption,  and 
imitation  is  contemptible  in  the  extreme.  Hence, 
though  we  cannot  be  great,  let  vis  be  honest ;  and 
though  we  cannot  be  brilliant,  let  us  be  genuine.  If 
a  person  goes  beyond  his  depth  without  knowing 
how  to  swim,  he  will  surely  flounder:  if  a  vessel 
put  out  to  sea  without  being  sea- worthy  and  in  trim, 
it  will  surely  be  beaten  back  into  harbor,  or  lost. 
Lot  left  "Ur  of  the  Chaldees,"  but  he  fell  in  the 
plains  of  Sodom.  The  call  of  God  had  not  reached 
his  heart,  nor  the  inheritance  of  God  filled  his  vi- 
sion. Solemn  thought !  may  we  ponder  it  deeply  ! 
Blessed  be  God,  there  is  a  path  for  each  of  His 
servants,  along  which  shines  the  light  of  His  approv- 
ing countenance,  and  to  walk  therein  should  be  our 
chief  joy.  His  approval  is  enough  for  the  heart 
that  knows  Him.  True,  we  may  not  always  be  able 
to  command  the  approval  and  concurrence  of  our 


146  GENESIS. 

brethren;  we  may  frequently  be  misunderstood; 
but  we  cannot  help  these  things.  "The  day"  will 
set  all  this  to  rights,  and  the  loyal  heart  can  content- 
edly wait  for  that  day,  knowing  that  then  "every 
man  shall  have  praise  of  God." 

But  it  may  be  well  to  examine  more  particularly 
what  it  was  that  caused  Lot  to  turn  aside  off  the 
path  of  public  testimony.  There  is  a  crisis  in  every 
man's  history,  at  which  it  will  assuredly  be  made 
manifest  on  what  ground  he  is  resting,  by  what  mo- 
tives he  is  actuated,  and  by  what  objects  he  is  ani- 
mated. Thus  it  was  with  Lot.  He  did  not  die  at 
Charran,  but  he  fell  at  Sodom.  The  ostensible  cause 
of  his  fall  was  the  strife  between  his  herdmen  and 
those  of  Abraham  ;  but  the  fact  is,  when  one  is  not 
really  walking  with  a  single  eye  and  purified  affec- 
tions, he  will  easily  find  a  stone  to  stumble  over.  If 
he  does  not  find  it  at  one  time,  he  will  at  another, — 
if  he  does  not  find  it  here,  he  will  find  it  there.  In 
one  sense,  it  makes  little  matter  as  to  what  may  be 
the  apparent  cause  of  turning  aside  ;  the  real  cause 
lies  underneath,  far  away,  it  may  be,  from  common 
observation,  in  the  hidden  chambers  of  the  heart's 
affections  and  desires,  where  the  world,  in  some 
shape  or  form,  has  been  sought  after.  The  strife 
between  the  herdmen  might  have  been  easily  settled 
without  spiritual  damage  to  either  Abraham  or  Lot. 
To  the  former,  indeed,  it  only  afforded  an  occasion 
for  exhibiting  the  beautiful  power  of  faith,  and  the 
moral  elevation — the  heavenly  vantage-ground — on 
which  faith  ever  sets  the  possessor  thereof.  But  to 


CHAPTER    XIII.  147 

the  latter,  it  was  an  occasion  for  exhibiting  the 
thorough  worldliness  of  his  heart.  The  strife  no 
more  produced  the  worldliness  in  Lot  than  it  pro- 
duced the  faith  in  Abraham  ;  it  only  manifested,  in 
the  case  of  each,  what  was  really  there. 

Thus  it  is  always  :  controversies  and  divisions 
arise  in  the  Church  of  God,  and  many  are  stumbled 
thereb3T,  and  driven  back  into  the  world  in  one  way 
or  another.  They  then  lay  the  blame  on  the  contro- 
versy and  division,  whereas  the  truth  is,  that  these 
things  were  only  the  means  of  developing  the  real 
condition  of  the  soul,  and  the  bent  of  the  heart. 
The  world  was  in  the  heart,  and  would  be  reached 
by  some  route  or  another;  nor  is  there  much  of 
moral  excellency  exhibited  in  blaming  men  and 
things,  when  the  root  of  the  matter  lies  within.  It 
is  not  that  controversy  and  division  are  not  to  be 
deeply  deplored :  assuredly  they  are.  To  see  breth- 
ren contending,  in  the  very  presence  of  "the  Ca- 
naanite  and  the  Perizzite,"  is  truly  lamentable  and 
humiliating.  Our  language  should  ever  be,  "Let 
there  be  no  strife,  I  pray  thee,  between  me  and  thee, 

for  we  are  brethren."     Still,  why  did  not 

Abraham  make  choice  of  Sodom  ? — why  did  not  the 
strife  drive  him  into  the  world  ?  why  was  it  not  an 
occasion  of  stumbling  to  him  ?  Because  he  looked 
at  it  from  God's  point  of  view.  No  doubt  he  had  a 
heart  that  could  be  attracted  by  "well-watered 
plains"  just  as  powerfully  as  Lot's  heart,  but  then 
he  did  not  allow  his  own  heart  to  choose.  He  first 
let  Lot  take  his  choice,  and  then  left  God  to  choose 


148  GENESIS. 

for  him.  This  was  heavenly  wisdom.  This  is  what 
faith  ever  does :  it  allows  God  to  fix  its  inheritance, 
as  it  also  allows  Him  to  make  it  good.  It  is  always 
satisfied  with  the  portion  which  God  gives.  It  can 
say,  "The  lines  are  fallen  to  me  in  pleasant  places ; 
yea,  I  have  a  goodly  heritage."  It  matters  not 
where  "the  lines"  fall;  for,  in  the  judgment  of 
faith,  they  always  fall  "in  pleasant  places,"  just 
because  God  casts  them  there. 

The  man  of  faith  can  easily  afford  to  allow  the 
man  of  sight  to  take  his  choice.  He  can  say,  "If 
thou  wilt  take  the  left  hand,  then  I  will  go  to  the 
right ;  or  if  thou  depart  to  the  right  hand,  then  I 
will  go  to  the  left."  What  beautiful  disinterested- 
ness 'and  moral  elevation  we  have  here  !  and  yet 
what  security  !  It  is  certain  that,  let  nature  range 
where  it  will,  let  it  take  its  most  comprehensive 
grasp — its  boldest  and  highest  flight,  there  is  never 
the  slightest  danger  of  its  laying  its  hand  upon 
faith's  treasure.  It  will  seek  its  portion  in  quite  an 
opposite  direction.  Faith  lays  up  its  treasure  in  a 
place  which  nature  would  never  dream  of  examin- 
ing ;  and  as  to  its  approaching  thereto,  it  could  not 
if  it  would,  and  it  would  not  if  it  could.  Hence, 
therefore,  faith  is  perfectly  safe,  as  well  as  beautifully 
disinterested,  in  allowing  nature  to  take  its  choice. 

What,  then,  did  Lot  choose,  when  he  got  his 
choice  ?  He  chose  Sodom, — the  very  place  that  was 
about  to  be  judged.  But  how  was  this  ?  Why  select 
such  a  spot  ?  Because  he  looked  at  the  outward 
appearance,  and  not  at  the  intrinsic  character  and 


CHAPTER    XIII.  149 

future  destinj^.  The  intrinsic  character  was  "wick- 
ed:'" its  future  destiny  was  '''•judgment" — to  be  de- 
stroyed by  "fire  and  brimstone  out  of  heaven." 
But.  it  may  be  said,  Lot  knew  nothing  of  all  this. 
Perhaps  not,  nor  Abraham  either ;  but  God  did  ; 
and  had  Lot  allowed  God  to  "choose  his  inheritance 
for  him,"  He  certainly  would  not  have  chosen  a 
spot  that  He  Himself  was  about  to  destroy.  He  did 
not,  however:  he  judged  for  himself.  Sodom  suited 
him,  though  it  did  not  suit  God.  His  eye  rested  on 
the  " well- watered  plains,"  and  his  heart  was  at- 
tracted by  them.  "He  pitched  his  tent  toward 
Sodom."  Such  is  nature's  choice  !  "Demas  hath 
forsaken  me,  having  loved  this  present  world."  Lot 
forsook  Abraham  for  the  same  reason.  He  left  the 
place  of  testimony,  and  got  into  the  place  of  judg- 
ment. 

"And  the  Lord  said  unto  Abram,  after  that  Lot 
was  separated  from  him,  'Lift  up  thine  eyes,  and 
look  from  the  place  where  thou  art,  northward,  and 
southward,  and  eastward,  and  westward ;  for  all  the 
land  which  thou  seest,  to  thee  will  I  give  it,  and  to 
thy  seed  forever.'"  The  "strife"  and  "separa- 
tion," so  far  from  damaging  Abraham's  spiritual 
condition,  rather  brought  out,  in  full  relief,  his 
heavenly  principles,  and  strengthened,  in  his  soul, 
the  life  of  faith.  Moreover,  it  cleared  the  prospect 
for  him,  and  delivered  him  from  the  company  of 
one  who  could  only  prove  a  dead  weight.  Thus  it 
worked  for  good,  and  yielded  a  harvest  of  blessing. 
It  is,  at  once,  most  solemn,  and  yet  most  cncourag- 


150  GENESIS. 

ing,  to  bear  in  mind  that,  in  the  long  run,  men  find 
their  proper  level.  Men  who  run  unsent,  break 
down,  in  one  way  or  another,  and  find  their  way 
back  to  that  which  they  profess  to  have  left.  On  the 
other  hand,  those  who  are  called  of  God,  and  lean 
on  Him,  are,  by  His  grace,  sustained.  ''Their  path 
is  as  the  shining  light,  which  shineth  more  and  more 
unto  the  perfect  day."  The  thought  of  this  should 
keep  us  humble,  watchful,  and  prayerful.  "Let  him 
that  thinketh  he  standeth  take  heed  lest  he  fall," 
for,  truly,  "  there  are  first  that  shall  be  last,  and 
there  are  last  that  shall  be  first."  "He  that  endur- 
eth  to  the  end,  the  same  shall  be  saved,"  is  a  prin- 
ciple which,  whatever  be  its  specific  application,  has 
a  wide  moral  bearing.  Many  a  vessel  has  sailed  out 
of  harbor  in  gallant  style,  with  all  its  canvass  spread, 
amid  cheering  and  shouting,  and  with  many  fair 
promises  of  a  first-rate  passage  ;  but,  alas  !  storms, 
waves,  shoals,  rocks,  and  quicksands  have  changed 
the  aspect  of  things ;  and  the  voyage  that  com- 
menced with  hope  has  ended  in  disaster.  I  am  here 
only  referring  to  the  path  of  service  and  testimony, 
and  by  no  means  to  the  question  of  a  man's  eternal 
acceptance  in  Christ.  This  latter,  blessed  be  God, 
does  not,  in  any  wise,  rest  with  ourselves,  but  with 
Him  who  has  said,  "I  give  unto  My  sheep  eternal 
life,  and  they  shall  never  perish,  neither  shall  any 
pluck  them  out  of  My  hand."  But  do  we  not  know 
that  many  Christians  set  out  on  some  special  course 
of  service  or  testimon3r,  under  the  impression  that 
they  are  called  of  God  thereto,  and,  after  a 


CHAPTER    XIII.  151 

they  break  down  ?  Unquestionably.  And,  further, 
very  many  set  out  in  the  profession  of  some  special 
principle  of  action,  respecting  which  they  have  not 
been  divinely  taught,  or  the  consequences  of  which 
they  have  not  maturely  considered  in  the  presence 
of  God,  and,  as  a  necessary  result,  they  themselves 
have  been  found,  after  a  time,  in  the  open  violation 
of  those  very  principles.  All  this  is  deplorable,  and 
should  be  carefully  avoided.  It  tends  to  weaken  the 
faith  of  God's  elect,  and  causes  the  enemies  of  the 
truth  to  speak  reproachfully.  Each  one  should  re- 
ceive his  call  and  his  commission  directly  from  the 
Master  Himself.  All  whom  Christ  calls  into  any 
special  service,  He  will  infallibly  maintain  therein, 
for  He  never  sent  any  one  a  warfare  at  his  own 
charges.  But  if  we  run  unsent,  we  shall  not  only 
be  left  to  learn  our  folly,  but  to  exhibit  it. 

Yet,  it  is  not  that  any  one  should  set  himself  up 
as  the  impersonation  of  any  principle,  or  as  an  ex- 
ample of  any  special  character  of  service  or  testi- 
mony. God  forbid.  This  would  be  the  most  egre- 
gious folly,  and  empty  conceit.  It  is  a  teacher's 
business  to  set  forth  God's  Word,  and  it  is  a  serv- 
ant's business  to  set  forth  the  Master's  will ;  but 
while  all  this  is  fully  understood  and  admitted,  we 
must  ever  remember  the  deep  need  there  is  of 
counting  the  cost  ere  we  undertake  to  build  a  tower 
or  go  forth  to  war.  Were  this  most  seriously  at- 
tended to,  there  would  be  far  less  confusion  and 
failure  in  our  midst.  Abraham  was  called  of  God 
from  Ur  to  Canaan,  and  hence  God  led  him  forth  on 
11 


152  GENESIS. 

the  way.  When  Abraham  tarried  at  Charran,  God 
waited  for  him  ;  when  he  went  down  into  Egypt,  He 
restored  him  ;  when  he  needed  guidance,  He  guided 
him ;  when  there  was  a  strife  and  a  separation,  He 
took  care  of  him  ;  so  that  Abraham  had  only  to  say, 
4 'Oh,  how  great  is  Thy  goodness  which  Thou  hast 
laid  up  for  them  that  fear  Thee,  which  Thou  hast 
wrought  for  them  that  trust  in  Thee,  before  the  sons 
of  men!"  He  lost  nothing  by  the  strife.  He  had 
his  tent  and  his  altar  before,  and  he  had  his  tent 
and  his  altar  afterwards.  "  Then  Abram  removed 
his  tent,  and  came  and  dwelt  in  the  plain  of  Mamre, 
.which  is  in  Hebron,  and  built  there  an  altar  unto 
the  Lord."  Lot  might  choose  Sodom;  but  as  for 
Abraham,  he  sought  and  found  his  all  in  God. 
There  was  no  altar  in  Sodom.  Alas  !  all  who  travel 
in  that  direction  are  in  quest  of  something  quite 
different  from  that.  It  is  never  the  worship  of  God, 
but  the  love  of  the  world,  that  leads  them  thither. 
And  even  though  they  should  attain  their  object, 
what  is  it? — how  does  it  end?  Just  thus  :  "He 
gave  them  their  request,  but  sent  leanness  into  their 
souls." 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

WE  are  here  presented  with  a  historic  record  of 
the  revolt  of  five  kings  from  under  the  hand 
of  Chederlaomer,  and  a  battle  consequent  thereon. 
The  Spirit  of  God  can  occupy  Himself  with  the 
movements  of  "kings  and  their  armies,"  when  such 
movements  are  in  anywise  connected  with  the  people 
of  God.  In  the  present  case,  Abraham  personally 
had  nothing  whatever  to  do  with  the  revolt  or  its 
consequences.  His  "tent"  and  "altar"  were  not 
likely  to  furnish  an  occasion  for  the  declaration  of 
war,  nor  yet  to  be  much  affected  by  the  outbreak  or 
issue  thereof.  The  proper  portion  of  a  heavenly 
man  could  never,  by  any  possibility,  tempt  the  cu- 
pidity nor  excite  the  ambition  of  the  kings  and 
conquerors  of  this  world. 

However,  although  Abraham  was  not  affected  by 
the  battle  of  "four  kings  with  five,"  yet  Lot  was. 
His  position  was  such  as  to  involve  him  in  the  whole 
affair.  So  long  as  we  are  enabled,  through  grace,  to 
pursue  the  path  of  simple  faith,  we  shall  be  thrown 
completely  outside  the  range  of  this  world's  circum- 
stances ;  but  if  we  abandon  our  high  and  holy  posi- 
tion as  those  whose  "citizenship  is  in  heaven,"  and 
seek  a  name,  a  place,  and  a  portion  in  the  earth,  we 
must  expect  to  participate  in  earth's  convulsions 
and  vicissitudes.  Lot  had  taken  up  his  abode  in  the 
plains  of  Sodom,  and  was  therefore  deeply  and  sens- 


154  GENESIS. 

ibly  affected  by  the  wars  of  Sodom.  It  must  ever  be 
tljus.  It  is  a  bitter  and  a  painful  thing  for  the  child 
of  God  to  mingle  himself  with  the  children  of  this. 
world.  He  can  never  do  so  without  serious  damage 
to  his  own  soul,  as  well  as  to  the  testimony  with 
which  he  is  intrusted.  What  testimony  was  Lot  in 
Sodom  ?  A  very  feeble  one  indeed,  if  one  at  all. 
The  very  fact  of  his  settling  himself  there  was  the 
death-blow  to  his  testimony.  To  have  spoken  a 
word  against  Sodom  and  its  ways,  would  have  been 
to  condemn  himself,  for  why  was  he  there  ?  But,  in 
truth,  it  does  not  by  any  means  appear  that  to  tes- 
tify for  God  formed  any  part  of  his  object  in  "pitch- 
ing his  tent  toward  Sodom."  Personal  and  family 
interests  seem  to  have  been  the  leading  springs  of 
action  in  his  heart ;  and  though,  as  Peter  tells  us, 
4 '  his  righteous  soul  was  vexed  with  the  filthy  con- 
versation of  the  wicked,  from  day  to  day,"  yet  had 
he  but  little  power  to  act  against  it,  even  if  inclined 
so  to  do. 

It  is  important,  in  a  practical  point  of  view,  to 
see  that  we  cannot  be  governed  by  two  objects  at 
the  same  time.  For  example,  I  cannot  have  before 
my  mind,  as  objects,  my  worldly  interests  and  the 
interests  of  the  gospel  of  Christ.  If  I  go  to  a  town 
for  the  purpose  of  setting  up  in  business,  then, 
clearly,  business  is  my  object,  and  not  the  gospel. 
I  may,  no  doubt,  propose  to  myself  both  to  attend 
to  business  and  to  preach  the  gospel  as  well ;  but, 
all  the  while,  either  one  or  the  other  must  be  my  ob- 
ject. It  is  not  that  a  servant  of  Christ  may  not  most 


CHAPTER    XIV.  155 

blessedly  and  effectually  preach  the  gospel  and  at- 
tend to  business  also ;  he  assuredly  may ;  but,  in 
such  a  case,  the  gospel  will  be  his  object,  and  not 
business.  Paul  preached  the  gospel  and  made  tents  ; 
but  the  gospel  was  his  object,  and  not  tent-making. 
If  I  make  business  my  object,  the  gospel-preaching 
will  speedily  prove  to  be  formal  and  unprofitable 
work ;  yea,  it  will  be  well  if  it  be  not  made  use  of 
to  sanctify  my  covetousness.  The  heart  is  very 
treacherous  ;  and  it  is  often  truly  astonishing  to  see 
how  it  deceives  us  when  we  desire  to  gain  some 
special  point.  It  will  furnish,  in  abundance,  the 
most  plausible  reasons  ;  while  the  eyes  of  our  under- 
standing are  so  blinded  by  self-interest,  or  unjudged 
willfulness,  as  to  be  incapable  of  detecting  their 
plausibility.  How  frequently  do  we  hear  persons 
defending  a  continuance  in  a  position  which  they 
admit  to  be  wrong,  on  the  plea  that  they  thereby 
enjoy  a  wider  sphere  of  usefulness.  To  all  such 
reasoning,  Samuel  furnishes  a  pointed  and  powerful 
reply, — "To  obey  is  better  than  sacrifice,  and  to 
hearken  than  the  fat  of  rams."  Which  was  able  to 
do  the  more  good  ?  Abraham,  or  Lot  ?  Does  not 
the  history  of  those  two  men  prove,  beyond  a  ques- 
tion, that  the  most  effectual  way  to  serve  the  world 
is  to  be  faithful  to  it  by  separating  from,  and  testi- 
fying against,  it  ? 

But  be  it  remembered,  that  genuine  separation 
from  the  world  can  only  be  the  result  of  communion 
with  God.  I  may  seclude  myself  from  the  world, 
and  constitute  myself  the  centre  of  my  being,  like  a 


156  GENESIS. 

monk  or  a  cynic ;  but  separation  to  God  is  a  totally 
different  thing.  The  one  chills  and  contracts,  the 
other  warms  and  expands.  That  drives  us  in  upon 
ourselves  ;  this  draws  us  out  in  love  and  interest  for 
others.  That  makes  self  and  its  interests  our  cen- 
tre ;  this  makes  God  and  His  glory  our  centre. 
Thus,  in  Abraham's  case,  we  see  that  the  very  fact 
of  his  separation  enabled  him  to  render  effectual 
service  to  one  who  had  involved  himself  in  trouble 
by  his  worldly  ways.  "When  Abram  heard  that 
his  brother  was  taken  captive,  he  armed  his  trained 
servants,  born  in  his  own  house,  three  hundred  and 
eighteen,  and  pursued  them  unto  Dan  .  .  ,  .  and 
he  brought  back  all  the  goods,  and  also  brought 
again  his  brother  Lot,  and  his  goods,  and  the  women 
also,  and  the  people."  Lot  was  Abraham's  brother 
after  all,  and  brotherly  love  must  act.  "A  brother 
is  born  for  adversity ;  "  and  it  often  happens  that  a 
season  of  adversity  softens  the  heart,  and  renders  it 
susceptible  of  kindness,  even  from  one  with  whom 
we  have  had  to  part  company ;  and  it  is  remarkable 
that  while  in  verse  12  we  read,  "They  took  Lot, 
Abram9 s  brother's  son,"  yet  in  verse  14  we  read, 
"When  Abram  heard  that  his  brother  was  taken 
captive."  The  claims  of  a  brother's  trouble  are 
answered  by  the  affections  of  a  brother's  heart. 
This  is  divine.  Genuine  faith,  while  it  always  ren- 
ders us  independent,  never  renders  us  indifferent ; — 
it  will  never  wrap  itself  up  in  its  fleece  while  a 
brother  shivers  in  the  cold.  There  are  three  things 
which  faith  does, — it  "purifies  the  heart,"  it  "works 


CHAPTER   XIV.  157 

by  love,"  and  it  "overcomes  the  world;"  and  all 
these  results  of  faith  are  beautifully  exhibited  in 
Abraham  on  this  occasion.  His  heart  was  purified 
from  Sodom's  pollutions ;  he  manifested  genuine 
love  to  Lot,  his  brother ;  and,  finally,  he  was  com- 
pletely victorious  over  the  kings.  Such  are  the 
precious  fruits  of  faith,  that  heavenly,  Christ-honor- 
ing principle. 

However,  the  man  of  faith  is  not  exempt  from  the 
assaults  of  the  enemy ;  and  it  frequently  happens 
that  immediately  after  a  victory,  one  has  to  encoun- 
ter a  fresh  temptation.  Thus  it  was  with  Abraham. 
"The  king  of  Sodom  went  out  to  meet  him,  after 
his  return  from  the  slaughter  of  Chederlaomer,  and 
of  the  kings  that  were  with  him."  There  was  evi- 
dently a  very  deep  and  insidious  design  of  the  enemy 
in  this  movement.  "The  king  of  Sodom"  presents 
a  very  different  thought,  and  exhibits  a  very  different 
phase  of  the  enemy's  power,  from  what  we  have  in 
"Chederlaomer  and  the  kings  that  were  with  him." 
In  the  former,  we  have  rather  the  hiss  of  the  ser- 
pent ;  in  the  latter,  the  roar  of  the  lion.  But 
whether  it  were  the  serpent  or  the  lion,  the  Lord's 
grace  was  amply  sufficient ;  and  most  seasonably 
was  this  grace  ministered  to  the  Lord's  servant,  at 
the  exact  moment  of  need.  "And  Melchisedek, 
king  of  Salem,  brought  forth  bread  and  wine,  and 
he  was  the  priest  of  the  most  high  God.  And  he 
blessed  him,  and  said,  'Blessed  be  Abram  of  the 
most  high  God,  possessor  of  heaven  and  earth ;  and 
blessed  be  the  most  high  God,  which  hath  delivered 


158  GENESIS. 

thine  enemies  into  thy  hand.' '  We  have  here  to 
remark,  first,  the  peculiar  point  at  which  Melchise- 
clek  enters  the  scene ;  and,  secondly,  the  double 
effect  of  his  ministry.  He  did  not  come  forth  when 
Abraham  was  in  pursuit  of  Chederlaomer,  but  when 
the  king  of  Sodom  was  in  pursuit  of  Abraham.  This 
makes  a  great  moral  difference.  A  deeper  character 
of  communion  was  needed  to  meet  the  deeper  char- 
acter of  conflict. 

And  then,  as  to  the  ministry,  the  "bread  and 
wine"  refreshed  Abraham's  spirit,  after  his  conflict 
with  Chederlaomer ;  while  the  benediction  prepared 
his  heart  for  his  conflict  with  the  king  of  Sodom. 
Abraham  was  a  conqueror,  and  yet  he  was  about  to 
be  a  combatant,  and  the  ro}Tal  priest  refreshed  the 
conqueror's  spirit,  and  fortified  the  combatant's 
heart. 

It  is  peculiarly  sweet  to  observe  the  manner  in 
which  Melchisedek  introduces  God  to  the  thoughts 
of  Abraham.  He  calls  Him  "the  most  high  God, 
possessor  of  heaven  and  earth;"  and  not  only  so, 
but  pronounces  Abraham  "blessed"  of  that  same 
God.  This  was  effectually  preparing  him  for  the 
king  of  Sodom.  A  man  who  was  "blessed  "  of  God 
did  not  need  to  take  aught  from  the  enemy ;  and  if 
"the  possessor  of  heaven  and  earth"  filled  his 
vision,  "the  goods"  of  Sodom  could  have  but  little 
attraction.  Hence,  as  might  be  expected,  when  the 
king  of  Sodom  made  his  proposal — "Give  me  the 
persons,  and  take  the  goods  to  thyself,"  Abraham 
replies,  "I  have  lift  up  my  hand  unto  the  Lord,  the 


CHAPTER    XIV.  159 

most  high  God,  the  possessor  of  heaven  and  earth, 
that  I  will  not  take  from  a  thread  even  to  a  shoe- 
latchet,  and  that  I  will  not  take  anything  that  is 
thine,  lest  thou  shonldest  say,  I  have  made  Abram 
rich."  Abraham  refuses  to  be  enriched  by  the  king 
of  Sodom.  How  could  he  think  of  delivering  Lot 
from  the  power  of  the  world  if  he  himself  were 
governed  thereby  ?  The  only  true  way  in  which  to 
deliver  another  is  to  be  thoroughly  delivered  myself. 
So  long  as  I  am  in  the  fire,  it  is  quite  impossible  I 
can  pluck  another  out  of  it.  The  path  of  separa- 
tion is  the  path  of  power,  as  it  is  also  the  path  of 
peace  and  blessedness. 

The  world,  in  all  its  various  forms,  is  the  great 
instrument  of  which  Satan  makes  use  in  order  to 
weaken  the  hands  and  alienate  the  affections  of  the 
servants  of  Christ.  But,  blessed  be  God,  when  the 
heart  is  true  to  Him,  He  alwa}-s  comes  in  to  cheer, 
to  strengthen,  and  to  fortify  at  the  right  time.  "The 
eyes  of  the  Lord  run  to  and  fro,  throughout  the 
whole  earth,  to  show  Himself  strong  in  the  behalf  of 
them  whose  heart  is  perfect  toward  Him."  (2  Chron. 
xvi.  9.)  This  is  an  encouraging  truth  for  our  poor, 
timid,  doubting,  faltering  hearts.  Christ  will  be  our 
strength  and  shield.  He  will  "cover  our  heads  in 
the  day  of  battle ; "  He  will  ' '  teach  our  hands  to 
war,  and  our  fingers  to  fight;"  and  finally,  "He 
will  bruise  Satan  under  our  feet  shortly."  All  this 
is  unspeakably  comforting  to  a  heart  sincerely  de- 
sirous of  making  way  against  "the  world,  the  flesh 
and  the  devil."  May  the  Lord  keep  our  hearts  true 


160  GENESIS. 

to  Himself,   in  the  midst  of  the  ensnaring   scene 
around  us. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

**  A  FTER  these  things,  the  word  of  the  Lord  came 
-£*-  unto  Abram  in  a  vision,  saying,  'Fear  not, 
Abram.  I  am  thy  shield,  and  thy  exceeding  great 
reward.'  '  The  Lord  would  not  suffer  His  servant 
to  be  a  loser,  by  rejecting  the  offers  of  the  world. 
It  was  infinitely  better  for  Abraham  to  find  himself 
hidden  behind  Jehovah's  shield  than  to  take  refuge 
beneath  the  patronage  of  the  king  of  Sodom,  and 
to  be  anticipating  his  "exceeding  great  reward" 
than  to  accept  "the  goods"  of  Sodom.  The  posi- 
tion into  which  Abraham  is  put,  in  the  opening 
verse  of  our  chapter,  is  beautifully  expressive  of  the 
position  into  which  every  soul  is  introduced  by  the 
faith  of  Christ.  Jehovah  was  his  "shield,"  that  he 
might  rest  in  Him  ;  Jehovah  was  his  "reward,"  that 
he  might  wait  for  Him.  So  with  the  believer  now: 
he  finds  his  present  rest,  his  present  peace,  his  pres- 
ent security,  all  in  Christ.  No  dart  of  the  enemy 
can  possibly  penetrate  the  shield  which  covers  the 
weakest  believer  in  Jesus. 

And  then,  as  to  the  future,  Christ  fills  it.  Pre- 
cious portion  !  Precious  hope  !  A  portion  which 
can  never  be  exhausted :  a  hope  which  will  never 
make  ashamed.  Both  are  infallibly  secured  by  the 


CHAPTER    XV.  161 

counsels  of  God  and  the  accomplished  atonement  of 
Christ.  The  present  enjoyment  thereof  is  by  the 
ministry  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  dwells  in  us.  This 
being  the  case,  it  is  manifest  that  if  the  believer  is 
pursuing  a  worldly  career,  or  indulging  in  worldly 
or  carnal  desires,  he  cannot  be  enjoying  either  the 
"shield"  or  the  "reward."  If  the  Holy  Ghost  is 
grieved,  He  will  not  minister  the  enjoyment  of  that 
which  is  our  proper  portion — our  proper  hope. 
Hence,  in  the  section  of  Abraham's  history  now 
before  us,  we  see  that  when  he  had  returned  from 
the  slaughter  of  the  kings,  and  rejected  the  offer  of 
the  king  of  Sodom,  Jehovah  rose  before  his  soul  in 
the  double  character,  as  his  "shield"  and  his  "ex- 
ceeding great  reward."  Let  the  heart  ponder  this, 
for  it  contains  a  volume  of  deeply  practical  truth. 
We  shall  now  examine  the  remainder  of  this  chapter^ 
In  it  we  have  unfolded  to  us  the  two  great  princi- 
ples of  sonship  and  heirship.  "And  Abram  said, 
'Lord  God,  what  wilt  Thou  give  me,  seeing  I  go 
childless,  and  the  steward  of  my  house  is  this  Eliezer 
of  Damascus  ? '  And  Abram  said,  '  Behold,  to  me 
Thou  hast  given  no  seed:  and  lo,  one  born  in  my 
house  is  mine  heir.9  "  Abraham  desired  a  son,  for 
he  knew,  upon  divine  authorit}',  that  his  "seed" 
should  inherit  the  land.  (Chap.  xiii.  15.)  Sonship 
and  heirship  are  inseparably  connected  in  the 
thoughts  of  God, — "He  that  shall  come  forth  out  of 
thine  own  bbwels  shall  be  thine  heir. ' '  Sonship  is 
the  proper  basis  of  everything;  and,  moreover,  it  is 
the  result  of  God's  sovereign  counsel  and  operation, 


162  GENESIS. 

as  we  read  in  James,  "Of  His  own  will  begat  He 
us."  Finall}',  it  is  founded  upon  God's  eternal 
principle  of  resurrection.  How  else  could  it  be  ? 
Abraham's  body  was  "dead;"  wherefore,  in  his 
case,  as  in  every  other,  sonship  must  be  in  the  power 
of  resurrection.  Nature  is  dead,  and  can  neither 
beget  nor  conceive  aught  for  God.  There  lay  the 
inheritance  stretching  out  before  the  patriarch's  eye, 
in  all  its  magnificent  dimensions ;  but  where  was 
the  heir  ?  Abraham's  body  and  Sarah's  womb  alike 
answered  "death."  But  Jehovah  is  the  God  of 
resurrection,  and  therefore  a  "dead  body"  was  the 
very  thing  for  Him  to  act  upon.  Had  nature  not 
been  dead,  God  should  have  put  it  to  death  ere  He 
could  fully  show  Himself.  The  most  suitable  theatre 
for  the  living  God  is  that  from  which  nature,  with  all 
its  boasted  powers  and  empty  pretensions,  has  been 
totally  expelled  by  the  sentence  of  death.  Where- 
fore, God's  word  to  Abraham  was,  "'Look  now 
toward  heaven,  and  tell  the  stars,  if  thou  be  able  to 
number  them  ; '  and  He  said  unto  him,  'So  shall  thy 
seed  be."  When  the  God  of  resurrection  fills  the 
vision,  there  is  no  limit  to  the  soul's  blessing ;  for  He 
who  can  quicken  the  dead,  can  do  anything. 

"And  he  believed  in  the  Lord,  and  He  counted  it 
unto  him  for  righteousness."  The  imputation  of 
righteousness  to  Abraham  is  here  founded  upon  his 
believing  in  the  Lord  as  the  Quickener  of  the  dead. 
It  is  in  this  character  that  He  reveals  Himself  in  a 
world  where  death  reigns  ;  and  when  a  soul  believes 
in  Him  as  such,  it  is  counted  righteous  in  His  sight. 


CHAPTER    XV.  163 

This  necessarily  shuts  man  out,  as  regards  his  co- 
operation, for  what  can  he  do  in  the  midst  of  a  scene 
of  death  ?  Can  he  raise  the  dead  ?  Can  he  open 
the  gates  of  the  grave  ?  Can  he  deliver  himself  from 
the  power  of  death,  and  walk  forth,  in  life  and 
liberty,  beyond. the  limits  of  its  dreary  domain? 
Assuredly  not.  Well,  then,  if  he  cannot  do  so,  he 
cannot  work  out  righteousness,  nor  establish  himself 
in  the  relation  of  sonship.  ' '  God  is  not  the  God  of 
the  dead,  but  of  the  living,"  and  therefore,  so  long 
as  a  man  is  under  the  power  of  death,  and  under  the 
dominion  of  sin,  he  can  neither  know  the  position  of 
a  son,  nor  the  condition  of  righteousness.  Thus, 
God  alone  can  bestow  the  adoption  of  sons,  and  He 
alone  can  impute  righteousness,  and  both  are  con- 
nected with  faith  in  Him  as  the  One  who  raised  up 
Christ  from  the  dead. 

It  is  in  this  way  that  the  apostle  handles  the  ques- 
tion of  Abraham's  faith,  in  Romans  iv,  where  he 
says,  "It  was  not  written  for  his  sake  alone,  that  it 
was  imputed  unto  him  ;  but  for  us  also,  to  whom  it 
shall  be  imputed,  if  we,  believe  on  Him  that  raised  up 
Jesus  our  Lord  from  the  dead.''  Here,  the  God  of 
resurrection  is  presented  "to  us  also"  as  the  object 
of  faith,  and  our  faith  in  Him  as  the  alone  ground 
of  our  righteousness.  If  Abraham  had  looked  up 
into  heaven's  vault,  spangled  with  innumerable  stars, 
and  then  looked  at  "his  own  body  now  dead,"  how 
could  he  ever  grasp  the  idea  of  a  seed  as  numerous 
as  those  stars  ?  Impossible.  But  he  did  not  look 
at  his  own  body,  but  at  the  resurrection-power  of 


164  GENESIS. 

God ;  and  inasmuch  as  that  was  the  power  which 
was  to  produce  the  seed,  we  can  easily  see  that  the 
stars  of  heaven  and  the  sand  on  the  sea-shore  are 
but  feeble  figures  indeed ;  for  what  natural  object 
could  possibly  illustrate  the  effect  of  that  power 
which  can  raise  the  dead  ? 

So  also,  when  a  sinner  hearkens  to  the  glad  tidings 
of  the  gospel,  were  he  to  look  up  to  the  unsullied 
light  of  the  divine  presence,  and  then  look  down 
into  the  unexplored  depths  of  his  own  evil  nature, 
he  might  well  exclaim,  How  can  I  ever  get  thither  ? 
— how  can  I  ever  be  fit  to  dwell  in  that  light  ? 
Where  is  the  answer  ?  In  himself  ?  Nay,  blessed 
be  God,  but  in  that  blessed  One  who  traveled  from 
the  bosom  to  the  cross  and  the  grave,  and  from 
thence  to  the  throne,  thus  filling  up,  in  His  Person 
and  work,  all  the  space  between  those  extreme 
points.  There  can  be  nothing  higher  than  the 
bosom  of  God — the  eternal  dwelling-place  of  the 
Son,  and  there  can  be  nothing  lower  than  the  cross 
and  the  grave ;  but,  amazing  truth  !  I  find  Christ 
in  both.  I  find  Him  in  the  bosom,  and  I  find  Him 
in  the  grave.  He  went  down  into  death  in  order 
that  He  might  leave  behind  Him,  in  the  dust  thereof, 
the  full  weight  of  His  people's  sins  and  iniquities. 
Christ  in  the  grave  exhibits  the  end  of  everything 
human — the  end  of  sin — the  full  limit  of  Satan's 
power.  The  grave  of  Jesus  forms  the  grand  ter- 
minus of  all.  But  resurrection  takes  us  beyond  this 
terminus,  and  constitutes  the  imperishable  basis  on 
which  God's  glory  and  man's  blessing  repose  for- 


CHAPTER    XV.  165 

ever.  The  moment  the  eye  of  faith  rests  on  a 
risen  Christ,  there  is  a,  triumphant  answer  to  every 
question  as  to  sin,  judgment,  death,  and  the  grave. 
The  One  who  divinely  met  all  these  is  alive  from  the 
dead,  and  has  taken  His  seat  at  the  right  hand  of 
the  Majesty  in  the  heavens ;  and  not  only  so,  but 
the  Spirit  of  that  risen  and  glorified  One,  in  the  be- 
liever, constitutes  him  a  son.  He  is  quickened  out 
of  the  grave  of  Christ:  as  we  read,  "And  you,  be- 
ing dead  in  your  sins,  and  the  uncircumcision  of 
your  flesh,  hath  He  quickened  together  with  Him, 
having  forgiven  you  all  trespasses."  (Col.  ii.  13.) 

Hence,  therefore,  sonship,  being  founded  on  res- 
urrection, stands  connected  with  perfect  justifica- 
tion— perfect  righteousness — perfect  freedom  from 
everything  which  could  in  anywise  be  against  us. 
God  could  not  have  us  in  His  presence  with  sin  upon 
us.  He  could  not  suffer  a  single  speck  or  stain  of  sin 
upon  His  sons  and  daughters.  The  father  could  not 
have  the  prodigal  at  his  table  with  the  rags  of  the 
far  country  upon  him.  He  could  go  forth  to  meet 
him  in  those  rags,  he  could  fall  upon  his  neck  and 
kiss  him  in  those  rags, — it  was  worthy  and  beauti- 
fully characteristic  of  his  grace  so  to  do ;  but  then 
to  seat  him  at  his  table  in  the  rags  would  never  do. 
The  grace  that  brought  the  father  out  to  the  prodigal, 
reigns  through  the  righteousness  which  brought  the 
prodigal  in  to  the  father.  It  would  not  have  been 
grace  had  the  father  waited  for  the  son  to  deck  him- 
self in  robes  of  his  own  providing,  and  it  would  not 
have  been  righteous  to  bring  him  in  in  his  rags  ;  but 


166  GENESIS. 

both  grace  and  righteousness  shone  forth  in  all  their 
respective  brightness  and  beauty  when  the  father 
went  out  and  fell  on  the  prodigal's  neck,  but  yet  did 
not  give  him  a  seat  at  his  table  until  he  was  clad  and 
decked  in  a  manner  suited  to  that  elevated  and 
happy  position.  God,  in  Christ,  has  stooped  to  the 
very  lowest  point  of  man's  moral  condition,  that,  by 
stooping,  He  might  raise  man  to  the  very  highest 
point  of  blessedness,  in  fellowship  with  Himself. 
From  all  this,  it  follows,  that  our  sonship,  with  all 
its  consequent  dignities  and  privileges,  is  entirely 
independent  of  us.  We  have  just  as  little  to  do 
with  it  as  Abraham's  dead  body  and  Sarah's  dead 
womb  had  to  do  with  a  seed  as  numerous  as  the 
stars  which  garnish  the  heavens,  or  as  the  sand  on 
the  sea-shore.  It  is  all  of  God.  God  the  Father 
drew  the  plan,  God  the  Son  laid  the  foundation, 
and  God  the  Holy  Ghost  raises  the  superstructure ; 
and  on  this  superstructure  appears  the  inscription, 
4 'THROUGH  GRACE,  BY  FAITH,  WITHOUT  WORKS  OF 
LAW." 

But  then  our  chapter  opens  another  most  import- 
ant subject  to  our  view,  namely,  heirship.  The 
question  of  sonship  and  righteousness  being  fully 
settled — divinely  and  unconditionally  settled,  the 
Lord  said  unto  Abraham,  "I  am  the  Lord  that 
brought  thee  out  of  Ur  of  the  Chaldees,  to  give  thee 
this  land  to  inherit  it. ' '  Here  comes  out  the  great 
question  of  heirship,  and  the  peculiar  path  along 
which  the  chosen  heirs  are  to  travel  ere  they  reach 
the  promised  inheritance.  "If  children,  then  heirs, 


CHAPTEB    XV.  107 

heirs  of  God,  and  joint-heirs  with  Christ ;  if  so  be 
that  we  suffer  with  Him,  that  we  may  be  also  glori- 
fied together. ' '  Our  way  to  the  kingdom  lies  through 
suffering,  affliction  and  tribulation ;  but,  thank  God, 
we  can,  by  faith,  say,  "the  sufferings  of  this  present 
time  are  not  worthy  to  be  compared  with  the  glory 
which  shall  be  revealed  in  us."  And  further,  we 
know  that  "our  light  affliction,  which  is  but  for  a 
moment,  worketh  out  for  us  a  far  more  exceeding 
and  eternal  weight  of  glory."  Finally,  "we  glory 
in  tribulation  ;  knowing  that  tribulation  worketh  pa- 
tience ;  and  patience,  experience ;  and  experience, 
hope. "  It  is  a  high  honor  and  a  real  privilege  to  be 
allowed  to  drink  of  our  blessed  Master's  cup,  and 
be  baptized  with  His  baptism, — to  travel  in  blest 
companionship  with  Him  along  the  road  which  leads 
directly  to  the  glorious  inheritance.  The  Heir  and 
the  joint- heirs  reach  that  inheritance  by  the  path- 
way of  suffering. 

But  let  it  be  remembered  that  the  suffering  of 
which  the  joint-heirs  participate  has  no  penal  ele- 
ment in  it.  It  is  not  suffering  from 'the  hand  of 
infinite  justice,  because  of  sin;  all  that  was  fully 
met  on  the  cross,  when  the  divine  victim  bowed  His 
sacred  head  beneath  the  stroke.  "Christ  also  hath 
once  suffered  for  sins,"  and  that  "once"  was  on  the 
tree,  and  noivhere  else.  He  never  suffered  for  sins 
before,  and  He  never  can  suffer  for  sins  again. 
"Once,  in  the  end  of  the  world  (the  end  of  all  flesh), , 
hath  He  appeared  to  put  away  sin  by  the  sacrifice, 
of  Himself. ' '  "  Christ  was  once  offered. ' ' 
12 


168  GENESIS. 

There  are  two  ways  in  which  to  view  a  suffering 
Christ, — first,  as  bruised  of  Jehovah ;  secondly,  as 
rejected  of  men.  In  the  former,  He  stood  alone ; 
in  the  latter,  we  have  the  honor  of  being  associated 
with  Him.  In  the  former,  I  say,  He  stood  alone, 
for  who  could  have  stood  with  Him  ?  He  bore  the 
wrath  of  God  alone  ;  He  traveled  in  solitude  down 
into  ' '  the  rough  valley  that  had  neither  been  eared 
nor  sown,"  and  there  He  settled  forever  the  question 
of  our  sins.  With  this  we  had  nothing  to  do,  though 
to  this  we  are  eternally  indebted  for  everything.  He 
fought  the  fight  and  gained  the  victory  alone,  but 
He  divides  the  spoils  with  us.  He  was  in  solitude 
"in  the  horrible  pit  and  miry  clay;"  but  directly 
He  planted  His  foot  on  the  everlasting  "rock"  of 
resurrection,  He  associates  us  with  Him.  He  utter- 
ed the  cry  alone  ;  He  sings  the  ' '  new  song ' '  in  com- 
pany. (Psalm  xl.  2,  3.) 

Now  the  question  is,  shall  wre  refuse  to  suffer  from 
the  hand  of  man  with  Him  who  suffered  from  the 
hand  of  God  for  us  ?  That  it  is,  in  a  certain  sense, 
a  question,  is  evident,  from  the  Spirit's  constant  use 
of  the  word  "if,"  in  connection  with  it. — "If  so 
be  we  suffer  with  Him." — "If  we  suffer,  we  shall 
reign."  There  is  no  such  question  as  to  sonship. 
We  do  not  reach  the  high  dignity  of  sons  through 
suffering,  but  through  the  quickening  power  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  founded  on  the  accomplished  work  of 
Christ,  according  to  God's  eternal  counsel.  This 
can  never  be  touched.  We  do  not  reach  the  family 
through  suffering.  The  apostle  does  not  say,  That 


CHAPTER   XV.  160 

ye  may  be  counted  worthy  of  the  family  of  God  for 
which  ye  also  suffer.  They  were  in  tne  family  al- 
ready ;  but  they  were  bound  for  the  kingdom,  and 
their  road  to  that  kingdom  lay  through  suffering; 
and  not  only  so,  but  the  measure  of  suffering  for  the 
kingdom  would  be  according  to  their  devotedness 
and  conformity  to  the  King.  The  more  like  we  are 
to  Him,  the  more  we  shall  suffer  with  Him  ;  and  the 
deeper  our  fellowship  with  Him  in  the  suffering,  the 
deeper  will  be  our  fellowship  in  the  glory.  There  is 
a  difference  between  the  house  of  the  Father  and 
the  kingdom  of  the  Son  :  in  the  former,  it  will  be  a 
question  of  capacity;  in  the  latter,  a  question  of 
assigned  position.  All  my  children  may  be  around 
my  table,  but  their  enjoyment  of  my  company  and 
conversation  will  entirely  depend  on  their  capacity. 
One  may  be  seated  on  my  knee,  in  the  full  enjoy- 
ment of  his  relationship,  as  a  child,  yet  perfectly 
unable  to  comprehend  a  word  I  say ;  another  may 
exhibit  uncommon  intelligence  in  conversation,  yet 
not  be  a  whit  happier  in  his  relationship  than  the 
infant  on  my  knee.  But  when  it  becomes  a  question 
of  service  for  me,  or  public  identification  with  me, 
it  is  evidently  quite  another  thing.  This  is  but  a 
feeble  illustration  of  the  idea  of  capacity  in  the 
Father's  house,  and  assigned  position  in  the  king- 
dom of  the  Son. 

But  let  it  be  remembered  that  our  suffering  with 
Christ  is  not  a  yoke  of  bondage,  but  a  matter  of 
privilege ;  not  an  iron  rule,  but  a  gracious  gift ;  not 
constrained  servitude,  but  voluntary  devotedness. 


170  GENESIS. 

"Unto  you  it  is  given,  in  the  behalf  of  Christ,  not 
only  to  believe  on  Him,  but  also  to  suffer  for  His 
sake."  (Phil.  i.  29.)  Moreover,  there  can  be  little 
doubt  but  that  the  real  secret  of  suffering  for  Christ 
is  to  have  the  heart's  affections  centred  in  Him. 
The  more  I  love  Jesus,  the  closer  I  shall  walk  with 
Him,  and  the  closer  I  walk  with  Him,  the  more 
faithfully  I  shall  imitate  Him,  and  the  more  faithfully 
I  imitate  Him,  the  more  I  shall  suffer  with  Him. 
Thus  it  all  flows  from  love  to  Christ ;  and  then  it  is 
a  fundamental  truth  that  "we  love  Him  because  He 
first  loved  us."  In  this,  as  in  everything  else,  let 
us  beware  of  a  legal  spirit ;  for  it  must  not  be  im- 
agined that  a  man  with  the  yoke  of  legality  round 
his  neck  is  suffering  for  Christ ;  alas  !  it  is  much  to 
be  feared  that  such'  an  one  does  not  know  Christ, 
does  not  know  the  blessedness-  of  sonship,  has  not 
yet  been  established  in  grace,  is  rather  seeking  to 
reach  the  family  by  works  of  law  than  to  reach  the 
kingdom  by  the  path  of  suffering. 

On  the  other  hand,  let  us  see  that  we  are  not 
shrinking  from  our  Master's  cup  and  baptism.  Let 
us  not  profess  to  enjoy  the  benefits  which  His  cross 
secures,  while  we  refuse  the  rejection  which  that 
cross  involves.  We  may  rest  assured  that  the  road 
to  the  kingdom  is  not  enlightened  by  the  sunshine 
of  this  world's  favor,  nor  strewed  with  the  roses  of 
its  prosperity.  If  a  Christian  is  advancing  in  the 
world,  he  has  much  reason  to  apprehend  that  he  is 
not  walking  in  company  with  Christ.  "If  any  man 
serve  Me,  let  him  follow  Me  ;  and  where  I  am,  there 


CHAPTER    XV.  171 

shall  also  My  servant  be."  What  was  the  goal  of 
Christ's  earthly  career  ?  Was  it  ari  elevated,  influ- 
ential position  in  this  world  ?  By  no  means.  What 
then  ?  He  found  His  place  on  the  cross,  between 
two  condemned  malefactors.  But,  it  will  be  said, 
God  was  in  this.  True  ;  yet  man  was  in  it  likewise  ; 
and  this  latter  truth  is  what  must  inevitably  secure 
our  rejection  by  the  world,  if  only  we  keep  in  com- 
pany with  Christ.  The  companionship  of  Christ, 
which  lets  me  into  heaven,  casts  me  out  of  earth ; 
and  to  talk  of  the  former,  while  I  am  ignorant  of 
the  latter,  proves  there  is  something  wrong.  If 
Christ  were  on  earth  now,  what  would  His  path  be  ? 
whither  would  it  tend  ?  where  would  it  terminate  ? 
Would  we  like  to  walk  with  Him  ?  Let  vis  answer 
those  inquiries  under  the  edge  of  the  Word,  and 
under  the  eye  of  the  Almighty  ;  and  may  the  Holy 
Ghost  make  us  faithful  to  an  absent,  a  rejected,  a 
crucified  Master.  The  man  who  walks  in  the  Spirit 
will  be  filled  with  Christ ;  and,  being  filled  with  Him, 
he  will  not  be  occupied  with  suffering,  but  with  Him 
for  whom  he  suffers.  If  the  eye  is  fixed  on  Christ, 
the  suffering  will  be  as  nothing  in  comparison  with 
the  present  joy  and  future  glory. 

The  subject  of  heirship  has  led  me  much  further 
than  I  intended ;  but  I  do  not  regret  it,  as  it  is  of 
considerable  importance.  Let  us  now  briefly  glance 
at  the  deeply  significant  vision  of  Abraham  as  set 
forth  in  the  closing  verses  of  our  chapter.  "And 
when  the  sun  was  going  doivn,  a  deep  sleep  fell  upon 
Abram ;  and,  lo,  a  horror  of  great  darkness  fell 


172  GENESIS. 

upon  him.  And  He  said  unto  Abram,  'Know  of  a 
surety,  that  thy  seed  shall  be  a  stranger  in  a  land 
that  is  not  theirs,  and  shall  serve  them ;  and  they 
shall  afflict  them  four  hundred  }Tears  ;  and  also  that 
nation,  whom  they  shall  serve,  will  I  judge:  and 
afterward  shall  they  come  out  with  great  substance. 

'  And  it  came  to  pass,  that,  when  the 

sun  'went  down,  and  it  was  dark,  behold  a  smoking 
furnace,  and  a  burning  lamp  that  passed  between 
those  pieces." 

The  entire  of  Israel's  history  is  summed  up  in 
those  two  figures — the  "furnace"  and  the  "lamp." 
The  former  presents  to  us  those  periods  of  their 
history  in  which  they  were  brought  into  suffering 
and  trial ;  such,  for  example,  as  the  long  period  of 
Egyptian  bondage,  their  subjection  to  the  kings  of 
Canaan,  the  Babylonish  captivity,  their  present  dis- 
persed and  degraded  condition.  During  all  these 
periods  they  may  be  considered  as  passing  through 
the  smoking  furnace.  (See  Deut.  iv.  20 ;  1  Kings 
viii.  51;  Isaiah  xlviii.  10.) 

Then,  in  the  burning  lamp,  we  have  those  points 
in  Israel's  eventful  history  at  which  Jehovah  gra- 
ciously appeared  for  their  relief,  such  as,  their  deliv- 
erance from  Egypt  by  the  hand  of  Moses,  their 
deliverance  from  under  the  power  of  the  kings  of 
Canaan  by  the  ministry  of  the  various  judges,  their 
return  from  Babylon  by  the  decree  of  Cyrus,  and 
their  final  deliverance  when  Christ  shall  appear  in 
His  glory.  The  inheritance  must  be  reached  through 
the  furnace ;  and  the  darker  the  smoke  of  the  fur- 


CHAPTER    XV.  173 

nace,  the  brighter  and  more  cheering  will  be  the 
lamp  of  God's  salvation. 

Nor  is  this  principle  confined  merely  to  the  people 
of  God  as  a  whole,  it  applies  just  as  fnlly  to  indi- 
viduals. All  who  have  ever  reached  a  position  of 
eminence  as  servants,  have  endured  the  furnace  be- 
fore they  enjoyed  the  lamp.  "A  horror  of  great 
darkness ' '  passed  across  the  spirit  of  Abraham  : 
Jacob  bad  to  endure  twenty-one  years  of  sore  hard- 
ship'in  the  house  of  Laban  :  Joseph  found  his  fur- 
nace of  affliction  in  the  dungeons  of  Egypt :  Moses 
spent  forty  years  in  the  desert.  Thus  it  must  be 
with  all  God's  servants.  They  must  be  ''tried" 
first,  that,  being  found  "faithful,"  they  may  be  "put 
into  the  ministry."  God's  principle,  in  reference  to 
those  who  serve  Him,  is  expressed  in  those  words 
of  St.  Paul,  "Not  a  novice,  lest  being  lifted  up  with 
pride  he  fall  into  the  condemnation  of  the  devil." 
(1  Tim.  iii.  6.) 

It  is  one  thing  to  be  a  child  of  God;  it  is  quite 
another  to  be  a  servant  of  Christ.  I  may  love  my 
child  very  much,  yet,  if  I  set  him  to  work  in  my 
garden,  he  may  do  more  harm  than  good.  Why  ? 
Is  it  because  he  is  not  a  dear  child  ?  No  ;  but  be- 
cause he  is  not  a  practiced  servant.  This  makes  all 
the  difference.  Relationship  and  office  are  distinct 
things.  Not  one  of  the  Queen's  children  is  at  pres- 
ent capable  of  being  her  prime  minister.  It  is  not 
that  all  God's  children  have  not  something  to  do, 
something  to  suffer,  something  to  learn.  Undoubt- 
edly they  have ;  yet  it  ever  holds  good,  that  public 


174  GENESIS. 

service  and  private  discipline  are  intimately  connect- 
ed in  the  wa}Ts  of  God.  One  who  comes  forward 
much  in  public  will  need  that  chastened  spirit,  that 
matured  judgment,  that  subdued  and  mortified  mind, 
that  broken  will,  that  mellow  tone,  which  are  the 
sure  and  beautiful  result  of  God's  secret  discipline  ; 
and  it  will  generally  be  found  that  those  who  take  a 
prominent  place  without  more  or  less  of  the  above 
moral  qualifications,  will  sooner  or  later  brea^:  down. 
Lord  Jesus,  keep  Thy  feeble  servants  very -near 
unto  Thine  own  most  blessed  Person,  and  in  the 
hollow  of  Thine  hand  ! 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

HERE  we  find  unbelief  casting  its  dark  shadow 
across  the  spirit  of  Abraham,  and  again  turn- 
ing him  aside,  for  a  season,  from  the  path  of  simple, 
happy  confidence  in  God.  "And  Sarai  said  unto 
Abram,  '  Behold  the  Lord  hath  restrained  me  from 
bearing.' '  These  words  bespeak  the  usual  impa- 
tience of  unbelief ;  and  Abraham  should  have 
treated  them  accordingly,  and  waited  patiently  on 
the  Lord  for  the  accomplishment  of  His  gracious 
promise.  The  poor  heart  naturally  prefers  anything 
to  the  attitude  of  tvaiting.  It  will  turn  to  any  ex- 
pedient, any  scheme,  any  resource,  rather  than  be 
kept  in  that  posture.  It  is  one  thing  to  believe  a 
promise  at  the  first,  and  quite  another  tiling  to  wait 


CHAPTER    XVI.  175 

quietly  for  the  accomplishment  thereof.  We  can  see 
this  distinction  constantly  exemplified  in  a  child. 
If  I  promise  my  child  anything,  he  has  no  idea  of 
doubting  my  word  ;  but  yet  I  can  detect  the  greatest 
possible  restlessness  and  impatience  in  reference  to 
the  time  and  manner  of  accomplishment.  And  can- 
not the  wisest  sage  find  a  true  mirror  in  which  to 
see  himself  reflected,  in  the  conduct  of  a  child  ? 
Truly  so.  Abraham  exhibits  faith  in  chapter  xv, 
and  yet  he  fails  in  patience  in  chapter  xvi.  Hence 
the  force  and  beauty  of  the  apostle's  word  in  He- 
brews vi, — "Followers  of  them  who  through  faith 
and  patience  inherit  the  promises."  God  makes  a 
promise ;  faith  believes  it,  hope  anticipates  it,  pa- 
tience waits  quietly  for  it. 

There  is  such  a  thing,  in  the  commercial  world,  as 
"the  present  worth"  of  a  bill  or  promissory  note ; 
for  if  men  are  called  upon  to  wait  for  their  money, 
they  must  be  paid  for  waiting.  Now,  in  faith's 
world  there  is  such  a  thing  as  the  present  worth  of 
God's  promise  ;  and  the  scale  by  which  that  worth 
is  regulated,  is  the  heart's  experimental  knowledge 
of  God ;  for  according  to  my  estimate  of  God,  will 
be  my  estimate  of  His  promise ;  and,  moreover,  the 
subdued  and  patient  spirit  finds  its  rich  and  full 
reward  in  waiting  upon  Him  for  the  accomplishment 
of  all  that  He  has  promised. 

However,  as  to  Sarah,  the  real  amount  of  her 
word  to  Abraham  is  this :  The  Lord  has  failed  me  ; 
it  may  be,  my  Egyptian  maid  will  prove  a  resource 
for  me.  Anything  but  God  for  a  heart  under  the 


176  GENESIS. 

influence  of  unbelief.  It  is  often  truly  marvelous  to 
observe  the  trifles  to  which  we  will  betake  ourselves 
when  once  we  have  lost  the  sense  of  God's  nearness, 
His  infallible  faithfulness  and  unfailing  sufficiency. 
We  lose  that  calm  and  well-balanced  condition  of 
soul  so  essential  to  the  proper  testimony  of  the  man 
of  faith,  and,  just  like  other  people,  betake  ourselves 
to  any  or  every  expedient  in  order  to  reach  the 
wished-for  end,  and  call  that  "a  laudable  use  of 
means." 

But  it.  is  a  bitter  thing  to  take  ourselves  out  of 
the  place  of  absolute  dependence  upon  God  :  the 
consequences  must  be  disastrous.  Had  Sarah  said, 
Nature  has  failed  me,  but  God  is  my  resource,  how 
different  it  would  have  been  !  This  would  have  been 
her  proper  ground,  for  nature  really  had  failed  her. 
But  then  it  was  nature  in  one  shape,  and  therefore 
she  wished  to  try  nature  in  another.  She  had  not 
learnt  to  look  away  from  nature  in  every  shape.  In 
the  judgment  of  God  and  of  faith,  nature  in  Hagar 
was  no  better  than  nature  in  Sarah.  Nature  whether 
old  or  young  is  alike  to  God,  and,  therefore,  alike 
to  faith ;  but,  ah  !  we  are  only  in  the  power  of  this 
truth  when  we  are  experimentally  finding  our  living 
centre  in  God  Himself.  When  the  eye  is  taken  off 
that  glorious  Being,  we  are  ready  for  the  meanest 
device  of  unbelief.  It  is  only  when  we  are  con- 
sciously leaning  on  the  only  true,  the  only  wise,  the 
living  God,  that  we  are  enabled  to  look  away  from 
every  creature  stream.  It  is  not  that  we  shall  de- 
spise God's  instrumentality.  By  no  means.  To  do 


CHAPTER    XVI.  177 

so  would  be  recklessness  and  not  faith.  Faith  values 
the  instrument,  not  because  of  itself,  but  because  of 
Him  who  uses  it.  Unbelief  looks  only  at  the  instru- 
ment, and  judges  of  the  success  of  a  matter  by  the 
apparent  efficiency  thereof,  instead  of  by  the  suffi- 
ciency of  Him  who,  in  grace,  uses  it.  Like  Saul, 
who,  when  he  looked  at  David  and  then  looked  at 
the  Philistine,  said,  "Thou  art  not  able  to  go  against 
this  Philistine  to  fight  with  him,  for  thou  art  but  a 
youth."  Yet  the  question  in  David's  heart  was  not 
as  to  whether  he  was  able,  but  whether  Jehovah 
was  able. 

The  path  of  faith  is  a  very  simple  and  a  very  nar- 
row one.  It  neither  deifies  the  means  on  the  one 
hand,  nor  despises  it  on  the  other ;  it  simply  values 
it  so  far  as  it  is  evidently  God's  means,  and  no 
further.  There  is  a  vast  difference  between  God's 
using  the  creature  to  minister  to  me,  and  my  using 
it  to  shut  Him  out.  This  difference  is  not  suffi- 
ciently attended  to.  God  used  the  ravens  to  minis- 
ter to  Elijah,  but  Elijah  did  not  use  them  to  exclude 
God.  If  the  heart  be  really  trusting  in  God,  it  will 
not  trouble  itself  about  His  means.  It  waits  on 
Him,  in  the  sweet  assurance  that  by  what  means  so- 
ever He  pleases,  He  will  bless,  He  will  minister,  He 
will  provide. 

Now,  in  the  case  before  us  in  this  chapter,  it  is 
evident  that  Hagar  was  not  God's  instrument  for  the 
accomplishment  of  His  promise  to  Abraham.  He 
Imd  promised  a  son,  no  doubt,  but  He  had  not  said 
that  this  son  should  be  Hagar' s ;  and,  in  point  of 


178  GENESIS. 

fact,  we  find,  from  the  narrative,  that  both  Abraham 
and  Sarah  "multiplied  their  sorrow"  by  having  re- 
course to  Hagar ;  for  ' '  when  she  saw  that  she  had 
conceived,  her  mistress  was  despised  in  her  eyes." 
This  was  but  the  beginning  of  those  multiplied  sor- 
rows, which  flowed  from  hastening  after  nature's 
resources.  Sarah's  dignity  was  trampled  down  by 
an  Egyptian  bondwoman,  and  she  found  herself  in 
the  place  of  weakness  and  contempt.  The  only  true 
place  of  dignity  and  power  is  the  place  of  felt  weak- 
ness and  dependence.  There  is  no  one  so  entirely 
independent  of  all  around  as  the  man  who  is  really 
walking  by  faith,  and  waiting  only  upon  God ;  but 
the  moment  a  child  of  God  makes  himself  a  debtor 
to  nature  or  the  world,  he  loses  his  dignity,  and  will 
speedily  be  made  to  feel  his  loss.  It  is  no  easy  task 
to  estimate  the  loss  sustained  by  diverging,  in  the 
smallest  measure,  from  the  path  of  faith.  No  doubt, 
all  those  who  walk  in  that  path  will  find  trial  and 
exercise  ;  but  one  thing  is  certain,  that  the  blessings 
and  joys  which  peculiarly  belong  to  them  are  infi- 
nitely more  than  a  counterpoise ;  whereas,  when 
they  turn  aside,  they  have  to  encounter  far  deeper 
trial,  and  naught  but  that. 

"And  Sarai  said,  'My  wrong  be  upon  thee.' ' 
When  we  act  wrong,  we  are  ofttimes  prone  to  lay 
the  blame  on  some  one  else.  Sarah  was  only  reap- 
ing the  fruit  of  her  own  proposal,  and  yet  she  says 
to  Abraham,  "My  wrong  be  upon  thee  ;  "  and  then, 
with  Abraham's  permission,  she  seeks  to  get  rid  of 
the  trial  which  her  own  impatience  had  brought  upon 


CHAPTER    XVI.  179 

her.  "But  Abram  said  unto  Sarai,  'Behold  thy 
maid  is  in  thy  hand  ;  do  to  her  as  it  pleaseth  thee.' 
And  when  Sarai  dealt  hardly  with  her,  she  fled  from 
her  face."  This  will  not  do.  "The  bondwoman" 
cannot  be  got  rid  of  by  hard  treatment.  When  we 
make  mistakes,  and  find  ourselves  called  upon  to 
encounter  the  results  thereof,  we  cannot  counteract 
those  results  by  carrying  ourselves  with  a  high  hand. 
We  frequently  try  this  method,  but  we  are  sure  to 
make  matters  worse  thereby.-  If  we  have  done 
wrong,  we  should  humble  ourselves  and  confess  the 
wrong,  and  wait  on  God  for  deliverance.  But  there 
was  nothing  like  this  manifested  in  Sarah's  case. 
Quite  the  reverse.  There  is  no  sense  of  having  done 
wrong ;  and,  so  far  from  waiting  on  G.od  for  deliver- 
ance, she  seeks  to  deliver  herself  in  her  own  way. 
However,  it  will  always  be  found  that  every  effort 
which  we  make  to  rectify  our  errors,  previous  to  the 
full  confession  thereof,  only  tends  to  render  our  path 
more  difficult.  Thus  Hagar  had  to  return,  and  give 
birth  to  her  son,  which  son  proved  to  be  not  the  child 
of  promise  at  all,  but  a  very  great  trial  to  Abraham 
and  his  house,  as  we  shall  see  in  the  sequel. 

Now,  we  should  view  all  this  in  a  double  aspect : 
first,  as  teaching  us  a  direct  practical  principle  of 
much  value ;  and  secondly,  in  a  doctrinal  point  of 
view.  And,  first,  as  to  the  direct,  practical  teach- 
ing, we  may  learn  that  when,  through  the  unbelief 
of  our  hearts,  we  make  mistakes,  it  is  not  all  in  a 
moment,  nor  yet  by  our  own  devices,  we  can  remedy 
them.  Tilings  must  take  their  course.  "Whatso- 


180  GENESIS. 

ever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall  he  also  reap.  For  he 
that  soweth  to  his  flesh  shall  of  the  flesh  reap  cor- 
ruption ;  hut  he  that  soweth  to  the  Spirit  shall  of  the 
Spirit  reap  life  everlasting."  This  is  an  unalterable 
principle,  meeting  us  again  and  again  on  the  page 
of  inspiration,  and  also  on  the  page  of  our  personal 
history.  Grace  forgives  the  sin  and  restores  the 
soul,  but  that  which  is  sown  must  he  reaped.  Abra- 
ham and  Sarah  had  to  endure  the  presence  of  the 
bondwoman  and  her  son  for  a  number  of  years,  and 
then  get  rid  of  them  in  God's  way.  There  is  pecu- 
liar blessedness  in  leaving  ourselves  in  God's  hands. 
Had  Abraham  and  Sarah  done  so,  on  the  present 
occasion,  they  would  never  have  been  troubled  with 
the  presence  of  the  bondwoman  and  her  son ;  but, 
having  made  themselves  debtors  to  nature,  they  had 
to  endure  the  consequences.  But,  alas  !  we  are 
often  "like  a  bullock  unaccustomed  to  the  yoke," 
when  it  would  be  our  exceeding  comfort  to  "  behave 
and  quiet  ourselves  as  a  child  that  is  weaned  of  his 
mother."  No  two  figures  can  be  more  opposite  than 
a  stubborn  bullock  and  a  weaned  child.  The  former 
represents  a  person  senselessly  struggling  under  the 
yoke  of  circumstances,  and  rendering  his  yoke  all 
the  more  galling  by  his  efforts  to  get  rid  of  it ;  the 
latter  represents  one  meekly  bowing  his  head  to 
everything,  and  rendering  his  portion  all  the  sweeter 
by  entire  subjection  of  spirit. 

And  now  as  to  the  doctrinal  view  of  this  chapter. 
We  arc  authorized  to  look  at  Hagar  and  her  son  as 
figures  of  the  covenant  of  works,  and  alt  who  are 


CHAPTER    XVI.  181 

thereby  brought  into  bondage.  (See  Gal.  iv.  22-25.) 
44 The  flesh"  is,  in  this  important  passage,  contrasted 
with  "promise;"  and  thus  we  not  only  get  the  di- 
vine idea  as  to  what  the  term  "flesh"  implies,  but 
also  as  to  Abraham's  effort  to  obtain  the  seed  by 
means  of  Hagar,  instead  of  resting  in  God's  "prom- 
ise." The  two  covenants  are  allegorized  by  Hagar 
and  Sarah,  and  are  diametrically  opposite  the  one  to 
the  other.  The  one  gendering  to  bondage,  inasmuch 
as  it  raised  the  question  as  to  man's  competency 
"to  do"  and  "not  to  do,"  and  made  life  entirely  de- 
pendent upon  that  competency.  "The  man  that 
doeth  these  things  shall  live  in  them."  This  was  the 
Hagar-covenant.  But  the  Sarah-covenant  reveals 
God  as  the  God  of  promise,  which  promise  is  en- 
tirely independent  of  man,  and  founded  upon  God's 
willingness  and  ability  to  fulfill  it.  When  God  makes 
a  promise,  there  is  no  "if"  attached  thereto.  He 
makes  it  unconditionally,  and  is  resolved  to  fulfill  it ; 
and  faith  rests  in  Him,  in  perfect  liberty  of  heart. 
It  needs  no  effort  of  nature  to  reach  the  accomplish- 
ment of  a  divine  promise.  Here  was  precisely  where 
Abraham  and  Sarah  failed.  They  made  an  effort  of 
nature  to  reach  a  certain  end,  which  end  was  abso- 
lutely secured  by  a  promise  of  God.  This  is  the 
grand  mistake  of  unbelief.  By  its  restless  activity, 
it  raises  a  hazy  mist  around  the  soul,  which  hinders 
the  beams  of  the  divine  glory  from  reaching  it.  ' '  He 
could  there  do  no  mighty  works,  because  of  their  un- 
belief." One  great  characteristic  virtue  of  faith  is, 
that  it  ever  leaves  the  platform  clear  for  God  to  show 


182  GENESIS. 

Himself;  and  truly,  when  He  shows  Himself,  man 
must  take  the  place  of  a  happy  worshiper. ' 

The  error  into  which  the  Galatians  allowed  them- 
selves to  be  drawn,  was  the  addition  of  something  of 
nature  to  what  Christ  had  already  accomplished  for 
them  by  the  cross.  The  gospel  which  had  been 
preached  to  them,  and  which  they  had  received,  was 
the  simple  presentation  of  God's  absolute,  unquali- 
fied and  unconditional  grace.  "Jesus  Christ  had 
been  evidently  set  forth  crucified  among  them." 
This  was  not  merely  promise  divinely  made,  but 
promise  divinely  and  most  gloriously  accomplished. 
A  crucified  Christ  settled  everything,  in  reference 
both  to  God's  claims  and  man's  necessities.  But 
the  false  teachers  upset  all  this,  or  sought  to  upset 
it,  by  saying,  "Except  ye  be  circumcised  after  the 
manner  of  Moses,  ye  cannot  be  saved."  This,  as 
the  apostle  teaches  them,  was,  in  reality,  "making 
Christ  of  none  effect."  Christ  must  either  be  a 
whole  Saviour,  or  no  Saviour  at  all.  The  moment  a 
man  says,  Except  ye  be  this  or  that,  ye  cannot  be 
saved,  he  totally  subverts  Christianity ;  for  in  Chris- 
tianity I  find  God  coming  down  to  me,  just  as  I  am 
— a  lost,  guilty,  self- destroyed  sinner ;  and  coming, 
moreover,  with  a  full  remission  of  all  my  sins,  and 
a  full  salvation  from  my  lost  estate,  all  perfectly 
wrought  by  Himself  on  the  cross. 

Hence,  therefore,  a  man  who  tells  me,  You  must 
be  so  and  so,  in  order  to  bo  saved,  robs  the  cross  of 
all  its  glory,  and  robs  me  of  all  my  peace.  If  sal- 
vation depends  upon  our  being  or  doing  aught,  we 


CHAPTER    XVI.  183 

shall  inevitably  be  lost.  Thank  God,  it  does  not; 
for  the  great  fundamental  principle  of  the  gospel  is, 
that  God  is  ALL  :  man  is  NOTHING.  It  is  not  a 
mixture  of  God  and  man, — it  is  all  of  God.  The 
peace  of  the  gospel  does  not  repose  in  part  on 
Christ's  work  and  in  part  on  man's  work ;  it  reposes 
wholly  on  Christ's  work,  because  that  work  is  perfect 
— perfect  forever ;  and  it  renders  all  who  put  their 
trust  in  it  as  perfect  as  itself. 

Under  the  law,  God,  as  it  were,  stood  still  to  see 
what  man  could  do  ;  but  in  the  gospel,  God  is  seen 
acting,  and  as  for  man,  he  has  but  to  "standstill 
and  see  the  salvation  of  God."  This  being  so,  the 
inspired  apostle  hesitates  not  to  say  to  the  Galatians, 
"Christ  is  become  of  no  effect  unto  you  ;  whosoever 
of  you  are  justified  by  law  \_F.V  KO//&}],  ye  are  fallen 
from  grace."  If  man  has  anything  to  do  in  the 
matter,  God  is  shut  out ;  and  if  God  is  shut  out, 
there  can  be  no  salvation,  for  it  is  impossible  that 
man  can  work  out  a  salvation  by  that  which  proves 
him  a  lost  creature  ;  and  then  if  it  be  a  question  of 
grace,  it  must  be  all  grace.  It  cannot  be  half  grace, 
half  law.  The  two  covenants  are  perfectly  distinct. 
It  cannot  be  half  Sarah  and  half  Hagar :  it  must  be 
either  the  one  or  the  other.  If  it  be  Hagar,  God  has 
nothing  to  do  with  it ;  and  if  it  be  Sarah,  man  lias 
nothing  to  do  with  it.  Thus  it  stands  throughout. 
The  law  addresses  man,  tests  him,  sees  what  lie  is 
really  worth,  proves  him  a  ruin,  and  puts  him  under 
the  curse  ;  and  not  only  puts  him  under  it,  but  keeps 
him  there,  so  long  as  he  is  occupied  with  it — so  long 
13 


184  GENESIS. 

as  he  is  alive.  "The  law  hath  dominion  over  a  man 
so  long  as  he  liveth  ; ' '  but  when  he  is  dead,  its  do- 
minion necessarily  ceases,  so  far  as  he  is  concerned, 
though  it  still  remains  in  full  force  to  curse  every 
living  man. 

The  gospel,  on  the  contrary,  assuming  man  to  be 
lost,  ruined,  dead,  reveals  God  as  He  is — the  Saviour 
of  the  lost,  the  Pardoner  of  the  guilty,  the  Quickener 
of  the  dead.  It  reveals  Him,  not  as  exacting  aught 
from  man,  (for  what  could  be  expected  from  one 
who  has  died  a  bankrupt  ?)  but  as  exhibiting  His 
own  independent  grace  in  redemption.  This  makes 
a  material  difference,  and  will  account  for  the  extra- 
ordinary strength  of  the  language  employed  in  the 
epistle  to  the  Galatians, — "I  marvel," — "Who  hath 
bewitched  you?" — "I  am  afraid  of  you," — UI 
stand  in  doubt  of  you," — "I  would  they  were  even 
cut  off  that  trouble  you."  This  is  the  language  of 
the  Holy  Ghost,  who  knows  the  value  of  a  full  Christ 
and  a  full  salvation,  and  who  also  knows  how  essen- 
tial the  knowledge  of  both  is  to  a  lost  sinner.  We 
have  no  such  language  as  this  in  any  other  epistle, 
not  even  in  that  to  the  Corinthians,  although  there 
were  some  of  the  grossest  disorders  to  be  corrected 
amongst  them.  All  human  failure  and  error  can  be 
corrected  by  bringing  in  God's  grace  ;  but  the  Gala- 
tians, like  Abraham  in  this  chapter,  were  going  away 
from  God  and  returning  to  the  flesh.  What  remedy 
could  be  devised  for  this  ?  How  can  you  correct  an 
error  which  consists  in  departing  from  that  which 
alone  can  correct  anything  ?  To  fall  from  grace  is 


CHAPTER    XVII.  185 

to  get  back  under  the  law,  from  which  nothing  can 
ever  be  reaped  but  "THE  CURSE."  May  the  Lord 
establish  our  hearts  in  His  own  most  excellent 
grace  ! 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

HERE  we  have  God's  remedy  for  Abraham's  fail- 
ure set  before  us.     "And  when  Abram  was 
ninety  years  old  and  nine,  the  Lord  appeared  unto 
Abram,  and  said  unto  him,  1 1  am  the  Almighty  God: 
walk  before  Me,  and  be  thou  perfect.9  "*     This  is  a 

*I  would  here  offer  a  remark  as  to  the  word  "perfect."  When 
Abraham  was  called  upon  to  be  "  perfect,"  it  did  not  mean  perfect 
in  himself;  for  this  he  never  was,  and  never  could  be.  It  simply 
meant  .that  he  should  be  perfect  as  regards  the  object  before  his 
heart — that  his  hopes  and  expectations  were  to  be  perfectly  and 
undividedly  centred  in  the  "Almighty  God." 

In  looking  through  the  New  Testament,  we  find  the  word  "per- 
fect" used  in  at  least  four  distinct  senses.  In  Matt.  v.  48  we  read, 
"  Be  ye  therefore  perfect,  even  as  your  Father  which  is  in  heaven  is 
perfect."  Here  we  learn  from  the  context  that  the  word  "perfect" 
refers  to  the  principle  of  our  walk.  At  verse  44  we  read,  "Love 

your  enemies, that  ye  may  be  the  sons  of  your  Father 

Avhieh  is  in  heaven ;  for  He  inaketh  the  sun  to  rise  upon  the  evil 
and  the  good,  and  sendeth.rain  upon  the  just  and  the  unjust." 
Hence,  to  be  "perfect"  in  the  sense  of  Matt.  v.  48  is  to  act  on  a 
principle  of  grace  toward  all,  even  toward  those  who  are  injurious 
and  hostile.  A  Christian  going  to  law,  and  asserting  or  contending 
for  his  rights,  is  not  "perfect  as  his  Father;'1  for  his  Father  is  deal- 
ing in  grace,  whereas  he  is  dealing  in  righteousness. 

The  question  here  is  not  as  to  the  right  or  wrong  of  going  to  law 
with  worldly  people  (as  to  brethren,  1  Cor.  vi  is  conclusive).  All  I 
contend  for  is,  that  a  Christian  so  doing  is  acting  in  a  character  the 
direct  opposite  to  that  of  his  Father;  for  assuredly  He  is  not  going- 
to  law  with  the  world.  He  is  not  now  on  a  judgment-seat,  but  on  a 
mercy-seat— a  throne  of  grace.  He  showers  His  blessings  upon. 


186  GENESIS. 

most  comprehensive  verse.  It  is  very  evident  that 
Abraham  had  not  been  walking  before  the  Almighty 
God  when  he  adopted  Sarah's  expedient  in  reference 
to  Hagar.  It  is  faith  alone  that  can  enable  a  man  to 
walk  up  and  down  before  an  Almighty  One.  Unbe- 
lief will  ever  be  thrusting  in  something  of  self,  some- 
thing of  circumstances,  second  causes,  and  the  like, 
and  thus  the  soul  is  robbed  of  the  joy  and  peace, 
the  calm  elevation  and  holy  independence,  which 
flow  from  leaning  upon  the  arm  of  One  who  can  do 
everything.  I  believe  we  deeply  need  to  ponder 


those  who,  were  He  to  go  to  law  Avith  them,  should  be  in  hell. 
Wherefore  it  is  plain  that  a  Christian,  when  he  brings  a  man  before 
the  judgYnent-scat,  is  not "  perfect  as  his  Father  which  is  in  heaven 
is  pei'fect." 

At  the  close  of  Matt,  xviii  we  have  a  parable  which  teaches  us 
that  a  man  who  asserts  his  rights  is  ignorant  of  the  true  character 
and  proper  effect  of  grace.  The  servant  was  not  unrighteous  in  de- 
manding what  was  due  to  him,  but  he  was  ungracious.  He  was  to- 
tally unlike  his  master.  He  had  been  forgiven  ten  thousand  talents, 
and  yet  lie  could  seize  his  fellow  by  the  throat  for  a  paltry  hundred 
pence.  What  was  the  consequence  ?  He  was  delivered  to  the  tor- 
mentors. He  lost  the  happy  sense  of  grace,  and  was  left  to  reap  the 
bitter  fruits  of  having  asserted  his  rights,  while  being  himself  a 
subject  of  grace.  And,  observe  further,  he  was  called  a.  "wicked 
servant,"  not  because  of  having  owed  "ten  thousand  talents,"  but 
because  of  not  having  forgiven  the  "  hundred  pence."  The  master 
had  ample  grace  to  settle  the  former,  but  he  had  not  grace  to  settle 
the  latter.  This  parable  has  a  solemn  voice  for  all  Christians  going 
to  law;  for  although,  in  the  application  of  it,  it  is  said,  "So  shall 
My  heavenly  Father  do  to  you,  if  you,  from  your  heart,  forgive  not 
every  one  his  brother  their  trespasses,"  yet  is  the  principle  of 
general  application,  that  a  man  acting  in  righteousness  will  lose 
the  sense  of  grace. 

In  Hebrews  ix  we  have  another  sense  of  the  term  "perfect." 
Here,  too,  the  context  settles  the  import  of  the  word.  It  is  "  per- 
fect, as  pertaining  to  the  conscience."  This  is  a  deeply  important 
use  of  the  term.  The  worshiper  under  the  law  never  could  have  a 
perfect  conscience,  for  the  simplest  reason  possible,  because  ho 


CHAPTER   XVII.  187 

this.  God  is  not  such  an  abiding  reality  to  onr 
souls  as  He  ought  to  be,  or  as  He  would  be,  were 
we  walking  in  more  simple  faith  and  dependence. 

4 '  Walk  before  Me. ' '  This  is  true  power.  To  walk 
thus,  implies  our  having  nothing  whatever  before 
our  hearts  save  God  Himself.  If  I  am  founding 
my  expectation  upon  men  and  .things,  I  am  not 
walking  before  God,  but  before  men  and  things.  It 
is  of  the  utmost  importance  to  ascertain  who  or 
what  I  have  before  me  as  an  object.  To  what  am  I 
looking  ?  On  whom  or  what  am  I  leaning,  at  this 

never  had  a  perfect  sacrifice.  The  blood  of  a  bullock  and  a  goat  did 
well  enough  for  a  lime,  but  it  could  not  do  forever,  and  therefore 
could  not  give  a  perfect  conscience.  Now,  however,  the  weakest 
believer  in  Jesus  is  privileged  to  have  a  perfect  conscience.  Why  ? 
Is  it  because  he  is  a  better  man  than  the  worshiper  under  the  law  ? 
Nay ;  but  because  he  has  gotten  a  better  sacrifice.  If  Christ's  sacri- 
lice  is  perfect  forever,  the  believer's  conscience  is  perfect  forever. 
The  two  things  necessarily  go  together.  For  the  Christian  not  to 
have  a  perfect  conscience  is  a  dishonor  to  the  sacrifice  of  Christ. 
It  is  tantamount  to  saying  that  His  sacrifice  is  only  temporary,  and 
not  eternal,  in  its  effect;  and  what  is  this  but  to  bring  it  down  to 
the  level  of  the  sacrifices  under  the  Mosaic  economy. 

It  is  very  needful  to  distinguish  between  perfection  in  the  flesh 
and  perfection  as  to  conscience.  To  pi-etend  to  the  former,  is  to 
exalt  self;  to  refuse  the  latter,  is  to  dishonor  Clvrist.  The  babe  in 
Christ  should  have  a  perfect  conscience ;  whereas  St.  Paul  had  not, 
nor  could  have,  perfect  flesh.  The  flesh  is  not  presented  in  the 
Word  as  a  thing  which  is  to  be  perfected,  but  as  a  thing  which  has 
been  cruciiied.  This  makes  a  wide  difference.  The  Christian  has 
sin  in  him,  but  not  on  him.  Why  ?  Because  Christ,  who  had  no 
sin  in  Him  ever,  had  sin  on  Him  when  He  was  nailed  to  the  cross. 

Finally,  in  Phil,  iii  AVO  have  two  other  senses  of  the  word  "per- 
fect." The  apostle  BUYS,  "Not  ns  though  I  had  already  attained, 
cither  were  already  perfect; "  and  yet  a  little  further  on  ho  says, 
"  Let  ns  many  as  be  perfect  be  thus  minded."  The  former  refers  to 
the  apostle's  full  and  everlasting  conformity  to  Christ  in  glory:  the 
latter  refers  to  our  having  Christ  as  the  all-engrossing  object 
before  the  heart's  afl'eetions, 


188  GENESIS. 

moment  ?  Does  God  entirely  fill  my  future  ?  Have 
men  .or  circumstances  aught  to  do  therein  ?  Is  there 
any  space  allotted  to  the  creature  ?  The  only  way 
in  which  to  get  above  the  world  is  to  walk  by  faith, 
because  faith  so  completely  fills  the  scene  with  God 
that  there  is  no  room  for  the  creature — no  room  for 
the  world.  If  God  fills  up  my  entire  range  of  vision, 
I  can  see  nothing  else  ;  and  then  I  am  able  to  say, 
with  the  Psalmist,  "My  soul,  wait  thou  only  upon 
God  ;  for  my  expectation  is  from  Him.  He  only  is 
my  rock  and  my  salvation :  He  is  my  defence,  I 
shall  not  be  moved."  (Ps.  Ixii.  5,  6.)  This  word 
"only"  is  deeply  searching.  Nature  cannot  say 
this.  Not  that  it  will,  save  when  under  the  direct 
influence  of  a  daring  and  blasphemous  scepticism, 
formally  shut  out  God  altogether ;  but  it  assuredly 
cannot  say,  "lie  only." 

Now,  it  is  well  to  see  that  as  in  the  matter  of  sal- 
vation, so  in  all  the  details  of  actual  life  from  day  to 
day,  God  will  not  share  His  glory  with  the  creature. 
From  first  to  last,  it  must  be  "He  only,"  and  this, 
too,  in  realitjr.  It  will  not  do  to  have  the  language 
of  dependence  upon  God  on  our  lips,  while  our 
hearts  are  really  leaning  on  some  creature  resource. 
God  will  make  all  this  fully  manifest ;  He  will  test 
the  heart ;  He  will  put  faith  into  the  furnace.  "Walk 
before  Me,  and  be  thou  perfect."  Thus  it  is  we 
reach  the  proper  point.  When  the  soul  is  enabled, 
by  grace,  to  get  rid  of  all  its'  fondly-cherished  crea- 
ture expectations,  then,  and  only  then,  it  is  prepared 
to  let  God  act ;  and  when  He  acts,  all  must  be  welh 


CHAPTER    XVII.  189 

He  will  not  leave  anything  undone.  He  will  per- 
fectly settle  everything  on  behalf  of  those  who  sim- 
ply put  their  trust  in  Him.  When  unerring  wisdom, 
omnipotent  power,  and  infinite  love  combine,  the 
confiding  heart  may  enjoy  unruffled  repose.  Unless 
we  can  find  some  circumstance  too  big  or  too  little 
for  "the  Almighty  God,"  we  have  no  proper  base 
on  which  to  found  a  single  anxious  thought.  This 
is  an  amazing  truth,  and  one  eminently  calculated 
to  put  all  who  believe  it  into  the  blessed  position  in 
which  we  find  Abraham  in  this  chapter.  When  God 
had,  in  effect,  said  to  him,  Leave  all  to  Me,  and  I 
will  settle  it  for  you,  beyond  your  utmost  desires 
and  expectations :  the  seed  and  the  inheritance,  and 
everything  pertaining  thereto,  will  be  fully  and  ever- 
lastingly settled,  according  to  the  covenant  of  the 
Almighty  God, — then  "Abram  fell  on  his  face." 
Truly  blessed  attitude  !  the  only  proper  one  for  a 
thoroughly  empty,  feeble,  and  unprofitable  sinner  to 
occupy  in  the  presence  of  the  living  God — the  Crea- 
tor of  heaven  and  earth — the  Possessor  of  all  things 
— "the  Almighty  God." 

u  And  God  talked  with  him."  It  is  when  man  is 
in  the  dust  that  God  can  talk  to  him  in  grace. 
Abraham's  posture  here  is  the  beautiful  expression 
of  entire  prostration,  in  the  presence  of  God,  in  the 
sense  of  utter  weakness  and  nothingness.  And  this, 
be  it  observed,  is  the  sure  precursor  of  God's  reve- 
lation of  Himself.  It  is  when  the  creature  is  laid 
low  that  God  can  show  Himself  in  the  unclouded 
effulgence  of  what  He  is.  He  will  not  give  His  glory 


190  GENESIS. 

to  another.  He  can  reveal  Himself,  and  allow  man 
to  worship  in  view  of  that  revelation  ;  but  until  the 
sinner  takes  his  proper  place,  there  can  be  no  un- 
folding of  the  divine  character.  How  different  is 
Abraham's  attitude  in  this  and  the  preceding  chap- 
ter !  There,  he  had  nature  before  him ;  here,  he 
has  the  Almighty  God  :  there,  he  is  an  actor ;  here, 
he  is  a  worshiper :  there,  he  was  betaking  himself  to 
his  own  and  Sarah's  contrivance ;  here,  he  leaves 
himself  and  his  circumstances,  his  present  and  his 
future,  in  God's  hands,  and  allows  Him  to  act  in 
him,  for  him  and  through  him.  Hence  God  can  say, 
4 '  I  will  make, " — ' '  I  will  establish, " — ' '  I  will  give, ' ' 
— "I  will  bless."  In  a  word,  it  is  all  God  and  His 
actings  ;  and  this  is  real  rest  for  the  poor  heart  that 
has  learnt  anything  of  itself. 

The  covenant  of  circumcision  is  now  introduced. 
Every  member  of  the  household  of  faith  must  bear 
in  his  body  the  seal  of  that  covenant.  There  must 
be  no  exception.  "He  that  is  born  in  thy  house, 
and  he  that  is  bought  with  thy  money,  must  needs 
be  circumcised :  and  My  covenant  shall  be  in  your 
flesh,  for  an  everlasting  covenant.  And  the  nncir- 
cumcised  man-child,  whose  flesh  of  his  foreskin  is 
not  circumcised,  that  soul  shall  be  cut  off  from  his 
people,  he  hath  broken  My  covenant."  We  are 
taught,  in  Romans  iv,  that  circumcision  was  "a  seal 
of  the  righteousness  of  faith."  "Abraham  believed 
God,  and  it  was  counted  unto  him  for  righteous- 
ness." Being  thus  counted  righteous,  God  set  His 
"seal"  upon  him. 


CHAPTER   XVII.  191 

The  seal  with  which  the  believer  is  now  sealed  is 
not  a  mark  in  the  flesh,  but  "that  Holy  Spirit  of 
promise,  whereby  he  is  sealed  unto  the  day  of  re- 
demption." This  is  founded  upon  his  everlasting 
connection  with  Christ,  and  his  perfect  identification 
with  Him,  in  death  and  resurrection ;  as  we  read,  in 
Colossians,  "And  ye  are  complete  in  Him,  which 
is  the  head  of  all  principality  and  power  :  in  whom 
also  ye  are  circumcised  with  the  circumcision  made 
without  hands,  in  putting  off  the  body  of  the  sins  of 
the  flesh  by  the  circumcision  of  Christ :  buried  with 
Him  in  baptism,  wherein  also  ye  are  risen  with  Him 
through  the  faith  of  the  operation  of  God,  who  hath 
raised  Him  from  the  dead.  And  you,  being  dead  in 
your  sins  and  the  uncircumcision  of  your  flesh,  hath 
He  quickened  together  with  Him,  having  forgiven 
you  all  trespasses."  This  is  a  most  glorious  pas- 
sage, unfolding  to  us  the  true  idea  of  what  circum- 
cision was  meant  to  typify.  Every  believer  belongs 
to  "the  circumcision"  in  virtue  of  his  living  asso- 
ciation with  Him  who,  by  His  cross,  has  forever 
abolished  everything  that  stood  in  the  way  of  His 
Church's  perfect  justification.  There  was  not  a 
speck  of  sin  on  the  conscience,  nor  a  principle  of 
sin  in  the  nature  of  His  people,  for  which  Christ  was 
not  judged  on  the  cross;  and  they  are  now  looked 
upon  as  having  died  with  Christ,  lain  in  the  grave 
with  Christ,  been  raised  with  Christ,  perfectly  ac- 
cepted in  Him, — their  sins,  their  iniquities,  their 
transgressions,  their  enmity,  their  uncircumcision, 
having  been  entirely  put  away  by  the  cross.  The 


192  GENESIS. 

sentence  of  death  has  been  written  on  the  flesh ;  but 
the  believer  is  in  possession  of  a  new  life,  in  union 
with  his  risen  Head  in  glory. 

The  apostle,  in  the  above  passage,  teaches  that 
the  Church  was  quickened  out  of  the  grave  of  Christ ; 
and,  moreover,  that  the  forgiveness  of  all  her  tres- 
passes is  as  complete,  and  as  entirely  the  work  of 
God,  as  was  the  raising  of  Christ  from  the  dead ; 
and  this  latter,  we  know,  was  the  result  of  "God's 
mighty  power,"  or,  as  it  maybe  rendered,  "accord- 
to  the  energy  of  the  might  of  His  power"  (Eph.  i. 
19.) — a  truly  wonderful  expression,  calculated  to 
set  forth  the  magnitude  and  glory  of  redemption,  as 
well  as  the  solid  basis  on  which  it  rests. 

What  rest — perfect  rest— for  the  heart  and  con- 
science is  here  !  What  full  relief  for  the  burdened 
spirit !  All  our  sins  buried  in  the  grave  of  Christ, 
— not  one — even  the  smallest — left  out !  God  did 
this  for  us  !  All  that  His  searching  eye  could  de- 
tect in  us,  He  laid  on  the  head  of  Christ  when  He 
hung  upon  the  cross  !  He  judged  Him  there  and 
then,  instead  of  judging  us  in  hell  forever  !  Pre- 
cious fruit,  this,  of  the  admirable,  the  profound,  the 
eternal  counsels  of  redeeming  love  !  And  we  are 
"sealed,"  not  with  a  certain  mark  cut  in  our  flesh, 
but  with  the  Holy  Ghost.  The  entire  household  of 
faith  is  sealed  thus.  Such  is  the  dignity,  the  value, 
the  changeless  efficacy  of  the  blood  of  Christ,  that 
the  Holy  Ghost— the  Third  Person  of  the  eternal 
Trinity — can  take  up  His  abode  in  all  those  who 
have  put  their  trust  therein. 


CHAPTEIl    XVIII.  193 

And  now  what  remains  for  those  who  know  these 
things,  save  to  "be  steadfast,  immovable,  always 
abounding  in  the  work  of  the  Lord."  Thus  may  it 
be,  O  Lord,  through  the  grace  of  Thy  Holy  Spirit ! 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THIS  chapter  affords  a  beautiful  exemplification 
of  the  results  of  an  obedient,  separated  walk. 
"Behold,  I  stand  at  the  door,  and  knock:  if  any 
man  hear  My  voice,  and  open  the  door,  I  will  come 
in  to  him,  and  will  sup  with  him,  and  he  with  Me." 
(Rev.  iii.  20.)  Again,  we  read,  "Jesus  answered 
and  said  unto  him,  'If  a  man  love  Me,  he  will  keep 
My  words ;  and  My  Father  will  love  him,  and  We 
will  come  unto  him,  and  make  our  abode  with  him.' ' 
(John  xiv.  23.)  From  these  passages,  taken  in  con- 
nection with  our  chapter,  we  learn  that  an  obedient 
soul  enjoys  a  character  of  communion  entirely  un- 
known to  one  who  moves  in  a  worldly  atmosphere. 

This  does  not  touch,  in  the  most  remote  manner, 
the  question  of  forgiveness  or  justification.  All 
believers  are  clothed  in  the  same  spotless  robe  of 
righteousness, — all  stand  in  one  common  justifica- 
tion, under  the  eye  of  God.  The  one  life  flows  down 
from  the  Head  in  heaven  ih rough  all  the  members 
on  earth.  This  is  plain.  The  doctrine  in  reference 
to  the  above  important  points  is  fully  established  in 
the  Word,  and  has  been  again  and  again  unfolded 


194  GENESIS. 

through  the  foregoing  pages  of  this  volume.  But 
we  should  remember  that  justification  is  one  thing, 
and  the  fruit  thereof  quite  another :  to  be  a  child  is 
one  thing,  to  be  an  obedient  child  is  quite  another. 
Now,  a  father  loves  an  obedient  child,  and  will  make 
such  a  child  more  the  depositary  of  his  thoughts  and 
plans.  And  is  this  not  true  in  reference  to  our 
heavenly  Father  ?  Unquestionably.  John  xiv.  23 
puts  this  quite  beyond  dispute ;  and,  moreover,  it 
proves  that  for  one  to  speak  of  loving  Christ,  and 
not  to  "keep  His  words,"  is  hypocrisy.  "If  a  man 
love  Me,  he  will  keep  My  words."  Hence,  if  we 
are  not  keeping  Christ's  words,  it  is  a  sure  proof  we 
are  not  walking  in  the  love  of  His  name.  Love  to 
Christ  is  proved  by  doing  the  things  which  He  com- 
mands, and  not  by  merely  saying,  "Lord,  Lord." 
It  is  of  very  little  avail  to  say,  "I  go,  sir,"  while 
the  heart  has  no  idea  of  going. 

However,  in  Abraham  we  see  one  who,  however 
lie  may  have  failed  in  detail,  was  nevertheless  char- 
acterized in  the  main  by  a  close,  simple  and  elevated 
walk  with  God  ;  and  in  the  interesting  section  of  his 
history  now  before  us,  we  find  him  in  the  enjoyment 
of  three  special  privileges,  namely,  providing  re- 
freshment for  the  Lord,  enjoying  full  communion 
with  the  Lord,  and  interceding  for  others  before  the 
Lord.  These  are  high  distinctions ;  and  yet  are 
they  only  such  as  ever  result  from  an  obedient,  sepa- 
rated, holy  walk.  Obedience  refreshes  the  Lord,  as 
being  the  fruit  of  His  own  grace  in  our  hearts.  We 
see  in  the  only  perfect  Man  that  ever  lived,  how 


CHAPTER    XVIII.  11)5 

He  constantly  refreshed  and  delighted  the  Father. 
Again  and  again  God  bore  testimony  to  Him  from 
heaven,  as  His  "beloved  Son,"  in  whom  He  was 
"well  pleased."  The  path  of  Christ  furnished  a 
continual  feast  to  heaven.  His  ways  were  ever  send- 
ing up  a  fragrant  incense  to  the  throne  of  God. 
From  the  manger  to  the  cross,  He  did  always  the 
things  which  pleased  His  Father.  There  was  no  in- 
terruption, no  variation,  no  salient  point.  He  was 
the  only  perfect  One. — 

"There  only  can  the   Spirit  trace 
A  perfect  life  below." 

Here  and  there,  as  we  look  along  the  current  of  in- 
spiration, we  find  one  and  another  who  occasionally 
refreshed  the  mind  of  heaven.  Thus,  in  the  chapter 
before  us,  we  find  the  tent  of  the  stranger  at  Mamre 
affording  refreshment  to  the  Lord  Himself, — refresh- 
ment lovingly  offered,  and  willingly  accepted.  (Ver. 
1-8.) 

Then  we  find  Abraham  enjoying  high  communion 
with  the  Lord,  first,  in  reference  to  his  own  personal 
interests  (ver.  9-15),  and  secondly,  in  reference  to 
the  destinies  of  Sodom  (ver.  1G-21).  What  con- 
firmation to  Abraham's  heart  in  the  absolute  promise 
—"Sarah  shall  have  a  son"!  Yet  this  promise 
only  elicited  a  laugh  from  Sarah,  as  it  had  elicited 
one  from  Abraham  in  the  preceding  chapter. 

There  are  two  kinds  of  laughter  spoken  of  in 
Scripture.  There  is,  first,  the  laughter  with  which 
the  Lord  fills  our  mouth,  when,  at  some  trying 
crisis,  He  appears  in  a  signal  manner  for  our  relief. 


19G  GENESIS. 

"When  the  Lord  turned  again  the  captivity  of  Zion, 
we  were  like  them  that  dream.  Then  was  our  mouth 
filled  with  laughter,  and  our  tongue  with  singing: 
then  said  they  among  the  heathen,  'The  Lord  hath 
done  great  things  for  them ; '  the  Lord  hath  done 
great  things  for  us,  whereof  we  are  glad."  (Psalm 
cxxvi.  1,  2.)  Again,  there  is  the  laughter  with  which 
unbelief  fills  our  mouths,  when  God's  promises  are 
too  magnificent  for  our  narrow  hearts  to  take  in,  or 
the  visible  agency  too  small,  in  our  judgment,  for 
the  accomplishment  of  His  grand  designs.  The  first 
of  these  we  are  never  ashamed  or  afraid  to  avow. — 
Zion's  sons  are  not  ashamed  to  say,  "Then  was  our 
mouth  filled  with  laughter."  (Psalm  cxxvi.  2.) 
When  Jehovah  makes  us  to  laugh,  we  may  laugh 
heartily.  "But  Sarah  denied,  saying,  4I  laughed 
not ; '  for  she  was  afraid."  Unbelief  makes  us  cow- 
ards and  liars :  faith  makes  us  bold  and  truthful,— 
it  enables  us  to  "come  boldly,"  and  to  "draw  near 
with  true  hearts." 

But  further,  Abraham  is  made  the  depositary  of 
God's  thoughts  and  counsels  sdbout  Sodom.  Though 
having  nothing  to  do  with  it  personally,  yet  he  was 
so  near  the  Lord  that  he  was  let  into  His  mind  in 
reference  to  it.  The  way  to  know  the  divine  pur- 
poses about  this  present  evil  world,  is  not  to  be 
mixed  up  with  it,  in  its  schemes  and  speculations, 
but  to  be  entirely  separated  from  it.  The  more 
closely  we  walk  with  God,  and  the  more  subject  we 
are  to  His  Word,  the  more  we  shall  know  of  His 
mind  about  everything.  I  do  not  need  to  study  tho 


CHAPTEU    XVIII.  197 

newspaper  in  order  to  know  what  is  going  to  happen 
in  the  world:  God's  Word  reveals  all  I  want  to 
know.  In  its  pure  and  sanctifying  pages  I  learn  ail- 
about  the  character,  the  course,  and  the  destiny  of 
the  world ;  whereas,  if  I  go  to  the  men  of  the  world 
for  news,  I  may  expect  that  the  devil  will  use  them 
to  cast  dust  in  my  eyes. 

Had  Abraham  visited  Sodom  in  order  to  obtain 
information  about  its  facts,  had  he  applied  to  some 
of  its  leading  intelligent  men,  to  know  what  they 
thought  of  Sodom's  present  condition  and  future 
prospects,  how  would  he  have  been  answered  ? 
Doubtless,  they  would  have  called  his  attention  to 
their  agricultural  and  architectural  schemes,  the 
vast  resources  of  the  country;  they  would  have 
placed  before  his  eyes  one  vast,  mingled  scene  of 
buying  and  selling,  building  and  planting,  eating 
and  drinking,  marrying  and  gwing  in  marriage. 
Doubtless,  too,  they  would  never  dream  of  judg- 
ment, and  if  any  one  had  made  mention  thereof, 
their  mouths  would  have  been  filled  with  infidel 
laughter.  Hence,  then,  it  is  plain  that  Sodom  was 
not  the  place  in  which  to  learn  about  Sodom's  end. 
No ;  the  place  where  ' '  Abraham  stood  before  tho 
Lord,"  afforded  the  only  proper  point  from  whence 
to  take  in  the  whole  prospect.  There  he  could  stand 
entirely  above  the  fogs  and  mists  which  had  gathered 
upon  Sodom's  horizon.  There,  in  the  clearness  and 
calmness  of  the  divine  presence,  he  could  under- 
stand it  all.  And  what  use  did  he  make  of  his 
knowledge  and  his  elevated  position  ?  how  was  he 


198  GENESIS. 

occupied  in  the  Lord's  presence  ?  The  answer  to 
these  inquiries  leads  us  to  the  third  special  privilege 
enjoyed  by  our  patriarch  in  this  chapter,  namely, — 

Intercession  for  others  before  the  Lord.  He  was 
enabled  to  plead  for  those  who  were  mixed  up  in 
Sodom's  defilement,  and  in  danger  of  being  involved 
in  Sodom's  judgment.  This  was  a  happy  and  a 
holy  use  to  make  of  his  place  of  nearness  to  God. 
Thus  it  is  ever.  The  soul  that  can  4 '  draw  near  to 
God,"  in  the  assurance  of  faith,  having  the  heart 
and  conscience  perfectly  at  rest,  being  able  to  repose 
in  God  as  to  the  past,  the  present,  and  the  future — 
that  soul  will  be  able  and  willing  to  intercede  for 
others.  The  man  who  has  on  "the  whole  armor  of 
God,"  will  be  able  to  pray  "for  all  saints."  And, 
oh  !  what  a  view  this  gives  us  of  the  intercession  of 
our  Great  High  Priest,  who  has  passed  into  the 
heavens  !  What  infinite  repose  He  enjoys  in  all  the 
divine  counsels  !  With  what  conscious  acceptance 
He  sits  enthroned  amid  the  brightness  of  the  Maj- 
esty in  the  heavens  !  and  with  what  efficacy  He 
pleads  before  that  Majesty  for  those  who  are  toiling 
along  amid  the  defilement  of  this  present  scene  ! 
Happy — ineffably  happy — they  who  are  the  subjects 
of  such  all-prevailing  intercession  !  At  once  happy 
and  secure.  Would  that  we  had  hearts  to  enter  into 
all  this, — hearts  enlarged,  by  personal  communion 
with  God,  to  take  in  more  of  the  infinite  fullness  of 
His  grace,  and  the  suitability  of  His  provision  for 
all  our  need. 

We  see,  in  this  scripture,  that  how  blessed  soever 


CHAPTER    XVIII.  199 

Abraham's  intercession  might  be,  yet  it  was  limited, 
because  the  intercessor  was  but  a  man.  It  did  not 
reach  the  need.  lie  said,  "I  will  speak  yet  but  this 
once,"  and  there  he  stopped  short,  as  if  afraid  of 
having  presented  too  large  a  draft  at  the  treasury  of 
infinite  grace,  or  forgetting  that  faith's  check  was 
never  yet  dishonored  at  God's  bank.  It  was  not 
that  he  was  straitened  in  God.  By  no  means.  There 
was  abundance  of  grace  and  patience  in  Him  to  have 
hearkened  to  His  dear  servant  had  he  proceeded 
even  to  three  or  one ;  but  the  servant  was  limited. 
He  was  afraid  of  overdrawing  his  account :  he 
ceased  to  ask,  and  God  ceased  to  give.  Not  so  our 
blessed  Intercessor.  Of  Him  it  can  be  said,  "He  is 

able  to  save  to  the  uttermost, seeing  he 

ever  liveth  to  make  intercession."  May  our  hearts 
cling  to  Him,  in  all  our  need,  our  weakness,  and 
our  conflict. 

Before  closing  this  section,  I  would  offer  a  remark, 
which,  whether  it  may  be  regarded  as  properly  flow- 
ing out  of  the  truth  contained  therein,  or  not,  is 
nevertheless  worthy  of  consideration.  It  is  of  the 
uttnost  importance,  in  the  study  of  Scripture,  to 
distinguish  between  God's  moral  government  of  the 
world,  and  the  specific  hope  of  the  Church.  The 
entire  body  of  Old  Testament  prophecy,  and  much 
of  the  New,  treats  of  the  former,  and,  in  so  doing, 
presents,  I  need  hardly  say,  a  subject  of  command- 
ing interest  to  every  Christian.  It  is  interesting  to 
know  what  God  is  doing,  and  will  do,  with  all  the 
nations  of  the  earth, — interesting  to  read  God's 
H 


200  GENESIS. 

thoughts  about  Tyre,  Babylon,  Nineveh,  and  Jeru- 
salem ;  about  Egypt,  Assyria,  and  the  land  of  Is- 
rael. In  short,  the  entire  range  of  Old  Testament 
prophecy  demands  the  prayerful  attention  of  every 
true  believer.  But,  1st  it  be  remembered,  we  do  not 
find  therein  contained  the  proper  hope  of  the  Church. 
How  could  we  ?  If  we  have  not  therein  the  Church's 
existence  directly  revealed,  how  could  we  have  the 
Church's  hope  ?  Impossible.  It  is  not  that  the 
Church  cannot  find  there  a  rich  harvest  of  divine 
moral  principles,  which  she  may  most  happily  and 
profitably  use.  She  undoubtedly  can ;  but  this  is 
quite  another  thing  from  finding  there  her  proper 
existence  and  specific  hope.  And  yet  a  large  por- 
tion of  the  Old  Testament  prophecies  has  been 
applied  to  the  Church;  and  this  application  has 
involved  the  whole  subject  in  such  mist  and  confu- 
sion, that  simple  minds  are  scared  away  from  the 
study,  and  in  neglecting  the  study  of  prophecy,  they 
have  also  neglected  that  which  is  quite  distinct  from 
prophecy,  properly  so  called — even  the  hope  of  the 
Church ;  which  hope,  be  it  well  remembered,  is  not 
anything  which  God  is  going  to  do  with  the  nations 
of  the  earth,  but  to  meet  the  Lord  Jesus  in  the 
clouds  of  heaven,  to  be  forever  with  Him  and  for- 
ever like  Him. 

Many  may  say,  I  have  no  head  for  prophecy. 
Perhaps  not,  but  have  you  a  heart  for  Christ  ? 
Surely,  if  you  love  Christ  you  will  love  His  appear- 
ing, though  you  may  have  no  capacity  for  prophetic 
investigation.  An  affectionate  wife  may  not  have  a 


CHAPTER    XVIII.  201 

head  to  enter  into  her  husband's  affairs,  but  she  has 
a  heart  for  her  husband's  return  ; — she  might  not  be 
able  to  understand  his  ledger  and  day-book,  but  she 
knows  his  footstep  and  recognizes  his  voice.  The 
most  unlettered  saint,  if  only  he  has  affection  for  the 
Person  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  can  entertain  the  most 
intense  desire  to  see  Him  ;  and  this  is  the  Church's 
hope.  The  apostle  could  say  to  the  Thessalonians, 
"Ye  turned  to  God  from  idols,  to  serve  the  living 
and  true  God,  and  to  wait  for  His  Son  from  heaven." 
(1  Thess.  i.  9,  10.)  Now,  evidently,  those  Thessa- 
lonian  saints  could,  at  the  moment  of  their  conver- 
sion, have  known  little,  if  anything,  of  prophecy, 
or  the  special  subject  thereof;  and  yet  they  were, 
at  that  very  moment,  put  into  the  full  possession 
and  power  of  the  specific  hope  of  the  Church — even 
the  coming  of  the  Son.  Thus  is  it  throughout  the 
entire  New  Testament.  There,  no  doubt,  we  have 
prophecy, — there,  too,  we  have  God's  moral  govern- 
ment; but,  at  the  same  time,  numberless  passages 
might  be  adduced  in  proof  of  the  fact,  that  the 
common  hope  of  Christians  in  apostolic  times — the 
simple,  unimpeded,  and  unencumbered  hope — was, 
THE  RETURN  OF  THE  BRIDEGROOM.  May 
the  Holy  Ghost  revive  "that  blessed  hope"  in  the 
Church ;  may  He  gather  in  the  number  of  the  elect, 
and  "make  ready  a  people  prepared  for  the  Lord." 


CHAPTEE  XIX. 

HHHERE  are  two  methods  which  the  Lord  graciously 
-L  adopts,  in  order  to  draw  the  heart  away  from 
this  present  world.  The  first  is,  by  setting  before  it 
the  attractiveness  and  stability  of  "things  above:" 
the  second  is,  by  faithfully  declaring  the  evanescent 
and  shakable  nature  of  "things  on  the  earth."  The 
close  of  Hebrews  xii  furnishes  a  beautiful  example 
of  each  of  these  methods.  After  stating  the  truth, 
that  we  are  come  unto  mount  Zion,  with  all  its 
attendant  joys  and  privileges,  the  apostle  goes  on  to 
say,  "See  that  ye  refuse  not  Him  that  speaketh ;  for 
if  they  escaped  not  who  refused  him  that  spake  on 
earth,  much  more  shall  not  we  escape  if  we  turn 
away  from  Him  that  speaketh  from  heaven ;  whose 
voice  then  shook  the  earth,  but  now  He  hath  prom- 
ised, saying,  4  Yet  once  I  shake,  not  only  the  earth, 
but  also  heaven.'  Now  this  4once'  signifieth  the 
removal  of  the  shakable  things,  as  of  things  that 
are  made,  that  the  unshakable  things  may  remain." 
Now  it  is  much  better  to  be  drawn  by  the  joys  of 
heaven,  than  driven  by  the  sorrows  of  earth.  The 
believer  should  not  wait  to  be  shaken  out  of  present 
things.  He  should  not  wait  for  the  world  to  give 
him  up,  before  he  gives  up  the  world:  he  should 
give  it  up  in  the  power  of  communion  with  heavenly 
things.  There  is  no  difficulty  in  giving  up  the  world 
when  we  have,  by  faith,  laid  hold  of  Christ;  the 


CHAPTER    XIX.  203 

difficulty  would  then  be  to  hold  it.  If  a  scavenger 
were  left  an  estate  of  ten  thousand  a  year,  he  would 
not  long  continue  to  sweep  the  streets.  Thus,  if  we 
arc  realizing  our  portion  amid  the  unshakable  realities 
of  heaven,  we  shall  find  little  difficulty  in  resigning 
the  delusive  joys  of  earth.  Let  us  now  look  at  the 
solemn  section  of  inspired  history  here  set  before  us. 
In  it  we  find  Lot  "sitting  in  the  gate  of  Sodom," 
the  place  of  authority.  He  has  evidently  made  pro- 
gress,— he  has  "got  on  in  the  world."  Looked  at 
from  a  worldly  point  of  view,  his  course  has  been  a 
successful  one.  He  at  first  "pitched  his  tent  toward 
Sodom  ;"  then,  no  doubt,  he  found  his  wray  into  it ; 
and  now  we  find  him  sitting  in  the  gate — a  promi- 
nent, influential  post.  How  different  is  all  this  from 
the  scene  with  which  the  preceding  chapter  opens ! 
But,  ah!  my  reader,  the  reason  is  obvious.  "By 
faith  Abraham  sojourned  in  the  land  of  promise,  as 
in  a  strange  country,  dwelling  in  tabernacles."  AVe 
have  no  such  statement  in  reference  to  Lot.*  It 
could  not  be  said,  By  faith  Lot  sat  in  the  gate  of 
Sodom.  Alas  !  no ;  he  gets  no  place  among  the 
noble  army  of  confessors — the  great  cloud  of  wit- 
nesses to  the  power  of  faith.  The  world  was  his 
snare,  present  things  his  bane.  He  did  not  "endure 
as  seeing  Him  who  is  invisible."  He  looked  at  "the 
things  which  are  seen,  and  temporal;"  whereas 
Abraham  looked  at  "the  things  which  are  unseen 

*It  would  furnish  a  very  searching  question  for  the  heart,  in  ref- 
erence to  every  undertaking,  were  we  to  ask,  Am  I  doing  this  by 
faith?  "  Whatever  is  not  of  faith  is  sin ; "  and  "  without  faith,  it  is 
impossible  to  please  God." 


204  GENESIS. 

and  eternal."  There  was  a  most  material  difference 
between  those  two  men,  who,  though  they  started 
together  on  their  course,  reached  a  very  different 
goal,  so  far  as  their  public  testimony  was  concerned. 
No  doubt  Lot  was  saved,  yet  it  was  "so  as  by  fire," 
for,  truly,  "his  work  was  burned  up."  On  the  other 
hand,  Abraham  had  "an  abundant  entrance  minis- 
tered unto  him  into  the  everlasting  kingdom  of  our 
Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ." 

Further,  we  do  not  find  that  Lot  is  permitted  to 
enjoy  any  of  the  high  distinctions  and  privileges 
with  which  Abraham  was  favored.  Instead  of  re- 
freshing the  Lord,  Lot  gets  his  righteous  soul  vexed  ; 
instead  of  enjoying  communion  with  the  Lord,  he  is 
at  a  lamentable  distance  from  the  Lord  ;  and,  lastly, 
instead  of  interceding  for  others,  he  finds  enough  to 
do  to  intercede  for  himself.  The  Lord  remained  to 
commune  with  Abraham,  and  merely  sent  His  angels 
to  Sodom ;  and  these  angels  could  with  difficulty 
be  induced  to  enter  into  Lot's  house,  or  partake  of 
his  hospitality:  "they  said,  'Nay,  but  we  will  abide 
in  the  street  all  night.'  "  What  a  rebuke  !  How 
different  from  the  willing  acceptance  of  Abraham's 
invitation,  as  expressed  in  the  words,  "So  do  as 
thou  hast  said." 

There  is  a  great  deal  involved  in  the  act  of  par- 
taking of  any  one's  hospitality.  It  expresses,  when 
intelligently  looked  at,  full  fellowship  with  him. — "I 
will  come  in  unto  him,  and  sup  with  him,  and  he 
with  Me." — "If  ye  have  judged  me  to  be  faithful  to 
the  Lord,  come. into  my  house  and  abide."  If  they 


CHAPTER    XIX.  205 

had  not  so  judged  her,  they  would  not  have  accepted 
her  invitation. 

Hence,  the  angels'  word  to  Lot  contains  a  most 
unqualified  condemnation  of  his  position  in  Sodom. 
They  would  rather  abide  in  the  street  all  night  than 
enter  under  the  roof  of  one  in  a  wrong  position. 
Indeed,  their  only  object  in  coming  to  Sodom  seems 
to  have  been  to  deliver 'Lot,  and  that,  too,  because 
of  Abraham  ;  as  we  read, — "And  it  came  to  pass, 
when  God  destroyed  the  cities  of  the  plain,  that  God 
remembered  Abraham,  and  sent  Lot  out  of  the  midst 
of  the  overthrow,  when  He  overthrew  the  cities  in 
which  Lot  dwelt."  This  is  strongly  marked.  It 
was  simply  for  Abraham's  sake  that  Lot  was  suffered 
to  escape.  The  Lord  has  no  sympathy  with  a  worldly 
mind ;  and  such  a  mind  it  was  that  had  led  Lot  to 
settle  down  amid  the  -defilement  of  that  guilty  city. 
Faith  never  put  him  there ;  a  spiritual  mind  never 
put  him  there  ;  "his  righteous  soul"  never  put  him 
there :  it  was  simple  love  for  this  present  evil  world 
that  led  him  first  to  "c/wose,"  then  to  "pitch  his 
tent  toward,"  and  finally  to  "sit  in  the  gate  of  Sod- 
om." And,  oh,  what  a  portion  he  chose!  Truly, 
it  was  a  broken  cistern  which  could  hold  no  water, 
— a  broken  reed  which  pierced  his  hand.  It  is  a 
bitter  thing  to  seek,  in  any  wise,  to  manage  for 
ourselves:  we  are  sure  to  make  the  most  grievous 
mistakes.  It  is  infinitely  better  to  allow  God  to 
order  all  our  ways  for  us, — to  commit  them  all,  in 
the  spirit  of  a  little  child,  to  Him  who  is  so  willing 
and  so  able  to  manage  for  us, — to  put  the  pen,  as  it 


206  GENESIS. 

were,  into  His  blessed  hand,  and  allow  Him  to  sketch 
out  our  entire  course,  according  to  His  own  unerring 
wisdom  and  infinite  love. 

No  doubt  Lot  thought  he  was  doing  well  for  him- 
self and  his  family  when  he  moved  to  Sodom,  but 
the  sequel  shows  how  entirely  he  erred  ;  and  it  also 
sounds  in  our  ears  a  voice  of  deepest  solemnity — a 
voice  telling  us  to  beware  how  we  yield  to  the  incip- 
ient workings  of  a  worldly  spirit.  ' '  Be  content  with 
such  things  as  }re  have."  Why?  Is  it  because  you 
are  so  well  off  in  the  world  ? — because  you  have  all 
that  your  poor  rambling  hearts  would  seek  after  ? — 
because  there  is  not  so  much  as  a  single  chink  in 
your  circumstances  through  which  a  vain  desire 
might  make  its  escape  ?  Is  this  to  be  the  ground 
of  our  contentment  ?  By  no  means.  What  then  ? 
"For  He  hath  said,  'I  will  never  leave  thee  nor 
forsake  thee.'  '  Blessed  portion  !  Had  Lot  been 
content  therewith,  he  never  would  have  sought  the 
well-watered  plains  of  Sodom. 

And  then,  if  we  need  any  further  ground  of  in- 
ducement to  the  exercise  of  a  contented  spirit,  truly 
we  have  it  in  this  chapter.  What  did  Lot  gain  in 
the  way  of  happiness  and  contentment  ?  Little  in- 
deed. The  people  of  Sodom  surround  his  house,  and 
threaten  to  break  into  it ;  he  seeks  to  appease  them 
by  a  most  humiliating  proposition,  but  all  in  vain. 
If  a  man  will  mingle  with  the  world,  for  the  purpose 
of  self-aggrandizement,  he  must  make  up  his  mind 
to  endure  the  sad  consequences.  We  cannot  profit 
by  the  world,  and,  at  the  same  time,  bear  effectual 


CHAPTER    XIX.  207 

testimony  against  its  wickedness.  "This  one  fellow 
came  in  to  sojourn,  and  he  will  needs  be  a  judge." 
This  will  never  do.  The  true  way  to  judge  is  to 
stand  apart,  in  the  moral  power  of  grace,  not  in  the 
supercilious  spirit  of  pharisaism.  To  attempt  to  re- 
prove the  world's  ways,  while  we  profit  by  associa- 
tion with  it,  is  vanity ;  the  world  will  attach  very 
little  weight  to  such  reproof  and  such  testimony. 
Thus  it  was,  too,  with  Lot's  testimony  to  his  sons-in- 
law;  "he  seemed  as  one  that  mocked."  It  is  vain 
to  speak  of  approaching  judgment  while  finding  our 
place,  our  portion,  and  our  enjoyment  in  the  very 
scene  which  is  to  be  judged. 

Abraham  was  in  a  far  better  position  to  speak  of 
j  udgmcnt,  inasmuch  as  he  was  entirely  outside  of  the 
sphere  thereof.  The  tent  of  the  stranger  at  Mamre 
was  in  no  danger,  though  Sodom  were  in  flames. 
O,  that  our  hearts  longed  more  after  the  precious 
fruits  of  a  realized  strangership,  so  that  instead  of 
havipg,  like  poor  Lot,  to  be  dragged  by  main  force 
out  of  the  world,  and  casting  a  lingering  look  be- 
hind, we  might,  with  holy  alacrity,  bound  forward, 
like  a  racer,  towards  the  goal. 

Lot  evidently  longed  after  the  scene  which  he  was 
forced,  by  angelic  power,  to  abandon  ;  for  not  only 
had  the  angels  to  lay  hold  of  him,  and  hasten  him 
away  from  the  impending  judgment,  but  even  when 
exhorted  to  escape  for  his  life,  (which  was  all  he 
could  save  from  the  wreck, )  and  flee  to  the  mountain, 
he  replies,  "Oh,  not  so,  my  Lord:  behold,  now,  thy 
servant  hath  found  grace  in  thy  sight,  and  thou  hast 


208  GENESIS. 

magnified  thy  mercy  which  thou  hast  showed  unto 
me  in  saving  my  life;  and  I  cannot  escape  to  the 
mountain,  lest  some  evil  take  me  and  I  die :  behold, 
now,  this  city  is  near  to  flee  unto,  and  it  is  a  little 
one:  oh!  let  me  escape  thither,  (is  it  not  a  little 
one?)  and  my  soul  shall  live."  What  a  picture  ! 
He  seems  like  a  drowning  man,  ready  to  catch  even 
at  a  floating  feather.  Though  commanded  by  the 
angel  to  flee  to  the  mountain,  he  refuses,  and  still 
fondly  clings  to  the  idea  of  "a  little  city," — some 
little  shred  of  the  world.  He  feared  death  in  the 
place  to  which  God  was  mercifully  directing  him,— 
yea,  he  feared  all  manner  of  evil,  and  could  only 
hope  for  safety  in  some  little  city — some  spot  of  his 
own  devising.  "  Oh  !  let  me  escape  thither,  and  my 
soid  shall  live."  How  sad  !  There  is  no  casting 
himself  wholly  upon  God.  Alas  !  he  had  too  long 
walked  at  a  distance  from  Him, — too  long  breathed 
the  dense  atmosphere  of  a  "city,"  to  be  able  to 
appreciate  the  pure  air  of  the  divine  presence,  or 
lean  on  the  arm  of  the  Almighty.  His  soul  seemed 
completely  unhinged;  his  worldly  nest  had  been 
abruptly  broken  up,  and  he  was  not  quite  able  to 
nestle  himself,  by  faith,  in  the  bosom  of  God.  He 
had  not  been  cultivating  communion  with  the  invisi- 
ble world,  and  now  the  visible  was  passing  away 
from  beneath  his  feet  with  tremendous  rapidity. 
The  "fire  and  brimstone  from  heaven"  were  about 
to  fall  upon  that  in  which  all  his  hopes  and  all  his 
affections  were  centred.  The  thief  had  broken  in 
upon  him,  and  he  seems  entirely  divested  of  spiritual 


CHAPTER    XIX.  209 

nerve  and  self-possession.  He  is  at  his  wits'  end; 
but  the  worldly  element,  being  strong  in  his  heart, 
prevails,  and  he  seeks  his  only  refuge  in  "a  little 
city."  Yet  he  is  not  at  ease  even  there,  for  he  leaves 
it  and  gets  up  to  the  mountain.  He  does  through 
fear  what  he  would  not  do  at  the  command  of  God's 
messenger. 

And  then  see  his  end  ! — His  own  children  make 
him  drunk,  and  in  his  drunkenness  he  becomes  the 
instrument  of  bringing  into  existence  the  Ammonites 
and  the  Moabites — the  determined  enemies  of  the 
people  of  God.  What  a  volume  of  solemn  instruc- 
tion is  here  !  Oh,  my  reader,  see  here  what  the 
world  is  !  see  what  a  fatal  thing  it  is  to  allow  the 
heart  to  go  out  after  it !  What  a  commentary  is 
Lot's  history  upon  that  brief  but  comprehensive  ad- 
monition, "Love  not  the  world"!  This  world's 
Sodoms  and  its  Zoars  are  all  alike.  There  is  no 
security,  no  peace,  no  rest,  no  solid  satisfaction  for 
the  heart  therein.  The  judgment  of  God  hangs  over 
the  whole  scene  ;  and  He  only  holds  back  the  sword 
in  long-suffering  mercy,  not  willing  that  any  should 
perish,  but  that  all  should  come  to  repentance. 

Let  us,  then,  seek  to  pursue  a  path  of  holy  sepa- 
ration from  the  world.  Let  us,  while  standing  out- 
side its  entire  range,  be  found  cherishing  the  hope 
of  the  Master's  return.  May  its  well- watered  plains 
have  no  charms  for  our  hearts.  May  its  honors,  its 
distinctions,  and  its  riches  be  all  surveyed  by  us  in 
the  light  of  the  coming  glory  of  Christ.  May  we  be 
enabled,  like  the  holy  patriarch  Abraham,  to  get  up 


210  GENESIS. 

into  the  presence  of  the  Lord,  and,  from  that  ele- 
vated ground,  look  forth  upon  the  scene  of  wide- 
spread ruin  and  desolation — tb  see  it  all,  by  faith's 
anticipative  glance,  a  smoking  ruin.  Such  it  will  be. 
"The  earth  also,  and  the  things  that  are  therein,  shall 
be  burned  up. ' '  All  that  about  which  the  children  of 
this  world  are  so  intensely  anxious — after  which  they 
are  so  eagerly  grasping — for  which  they  are  so  fiercely 
contending, — all — all  will  be  burned  up.  And  who 
can  tell  how  soon  ?  Where  is  Sodom  ?  Where  is 
Gomorrha  ?  Where  are  the  cities  of  the  plain — those 
cities  which  were  once  all  life  and  stir  and  bustle  ? 
Where  are  they  now  ?  All  gone  !  swept  away  by  the 
j  udgment  of  God  !  consumed  by  His  fire  and  brim- 
stone !  Well,  His  judgments  now  hang  over  this 
guilty  world.  The  day  is  at  hand  ;  and  while  judg- 
ments impend,  the  sweet  story  of  grace  is  being  told 
out  to  many  an  ear.  Happy  they  who  hear  and  be- 
lieve that  story  !  Happy  they  who  flee  to  the  strong 
mountain  of  God's  salvation  !  who  take  refuge  be- 
hind the  cross  of  the  Son  of  God,  and  therein  find 
pardon  and  peace  ! 

God  grant  that  the  reader  of  these  lines  may  know 
what  it  is  (with  a  conscience  purged  from  sin,  and 
his  heart's  affections  purged  from  the  defiling  influ- 
ence of  the  world, )  to  wait  for  the  Son  from  heaven. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

WE  have  two  distinct  points  in  this  chapter :  first, 
the  moral  degradation  to  which  the  child  of 
God  sometimes  subjects  himself,  in  the  view  of  the 
world  ;  and  secondly,  the  moral  dignity  which  always 
belongs  to  him  in  the  view  of  God.  Abraham  again 
exhibits  the  dread  of  circumstances,  which  the  heart 
can  so  easily  understand.  He  sojourns  in  Gerar, 
and  fears  the  men  of  that  place.  Judging  that  God 
was  not  there,  he  forgets  that  He  is  always  with  him. 
He  seems  to  be  more  occupied  with  the  men  of  Gerar 
than  with  the  One  who  was  stronger  than  they. 
Forgetting  God's  ability  to  protect  his  wife,  he  has 
recourse  to  the  same  stratagem  which,  years  before, 
he  had  adopted  in  Egypt.  This  is  very  admonitory. 
The  father  of  the  faithful  was  carried  away  by  taking 
his  eye  off  God.  He  lost,  for  a  little,  his  centre  in 
God,  and  therefore  gave  way.  How  true  it  is,  that 
we  are  only  strong  as  we  cling  to  God  in  the  sense 
of  our  perfect  weakness.  So  long  as  we  are  in  the 
path  of  His  appointment,  nothing  can  harm  us.  Had 
Abraham  simply  leaned  on  God,  the  men  of  Gerar 
would  not  have  meddled  with  him ;  and  it  was  his 
privilege  to  have  vindicated  God's  faithfulness  in  the 
midst  of  the  most  appalling  difficulties.  Thus,  too, 
he  would  have  maintained  his  own  dignity  as  a  man 
of  faith. 

It  is  often  a  source  of  sorrow  to  the  heart  to  mark 


212  GENESIS. 

how  the  children  of  God  dishonor  Him,  and,  as  a 
consequence,  lower  themselves  before  the  world  by 
losing  the  sense  of  His  sufficiency  for  every  emerg- 
ency. So  long  as  we  live  in  the  realization  of  the 
truth  that  all  our  springs  are  in  God,  so  long  shall 
we  be  above  the  world  in  every  shape  and  form. 
There  is  nothing  so  elevating  to  the  whole  moral  be- 
ing as  faith :  it  carries  one  entirely  beyond  the  reach 
of  this  world's  thoughts ;  for  how  can  the  men  of 
the  world,  or  even  worldly-minded  Christians,  under- 
stand the  life  of  faith  ?  Impossible.  The  springs 
on  which  it  draws  lie  far  away  beyond  their  compre- 
hension. They  live  on  the  surface  of  present  things. 
So  long  as  they  can  see  what  they  deem  a  proper 
foundation  for  hope  and  confidence,  so  long  they  are 
hopeful  and  confident ;  but  the  idea  of  resting  solely 
on  the  promise  of  an  unseen  God,  they  understand 
not.  But  the  man  of  faith  is  calm  in  the  midst  of 
scenes  in  which  nature  can  see  nothing.  Hence  it  is 
that  faith  ever  seems,  in  the  judgment  of  nature, 
such  a  reckless,  improvident,  visionary  thing.  None 
but  those  who  know  God  can  ever  approve  the  act- 
ings of  faith ;  for  none  but  they  really  understand  the 
solid  and  truly-reasonable  ground  of  such  actings. 

In  this  chapter  we  find  the  man  of  God  actually 
exposing  himself  to  the  rebuke  and  reproach  of  the 
men  of  the  wrorld,  by  reason  of  his  actings  when 
under  the  power  of  unbelief.  Thus  it  must  ever  be. 
Nothing  but  faith  can  impart  true  elevation  to  a 
man's  course  and  character.  We  ma}',  it  is  true, 
see  some  who  are  naturally  upright  and  honorable  in 


CHAPTER    XX.  213 

their  ways,  yet  nature's  uprightness  and  honor  can- 
not be  trusted ;  they  rest  on  a  bad  foundation,  and 
are  liable  to  give  way  at  any  moment.  It  is  only 
faith  which  can  impart  a  truly  elevated  moral  tone, 
because  it  connects  the  soul  in  living  power  with 
God,  the  only  source  of  true  morality.  And  it  is  a 
remarkable  fact,  that  in  the  case  of  all  those  whom 
God  has  graciously  taken  up,  we  see  that,  when  off 
the  path  of  faith,  they  sank  even  lower  than  other 
men.  This  will  account  for  Abraham's  conduct  in 
this  part  of  his  history. 

But  there  is  another  point  of  much  interest  and 
value  brought  out  here.  We  find  that  Abraham  had 
harbored  an  evil  thing  for  a  number  of  years ; — he 
had,  it  seems,  started  upon  his  course  with  a  certain 
reserve  in  his  soul,  which  reserve  was  the  result  of 
his  want  of  full,  unqualified  confidence  in  God.  Had 
he  been  able  fully  to  trust  God  in  reference  to  Sarah, 
there  would  have  been  no  need  of  any  reserve  or 
subterfuge  whatever.  God  would  have  fenced  her 
round  about  from  every  ill ;  and  who  can  harm  those 
who  are  the  happy  subjects  of  His  unsl umbering 
guardianship  ?  However,  through  mercy,  Abraham 
is  enabled  to  bring  out  the  root  of  the  whole  matter 
— to  confess  and  judge  it  thoroughly,  and  get  rid  of 
it.  This  is  the  true  way  to  act.  There  can  be  no 
real  blessing  and  power  till  every  particle  of  leaven 
is  brought  forth  into  the  light  and  there  trampled 
under  foot.  God's  patience  is  exhaustless.  He  can 
wait, — He  can  bear  with  us  ;  but  He  never  will  con- 
duct a  soul  to  the  culminating  point  of  blessing  and 


214  GENESIS. 

power  while  leaven  remains  known  and  unjnclged. 
Thus  much  as  to  Abimeleeh  and  Abraham.  Let  us 
now  look  at  the  moral  dignity  of  the  latter  in  the 
view  of  God. 

In  the  history  of  God's  people,  whether  we  look 
at  them  as  a  whole,  or  as  individuals,  we  are  often 
struck  with  the  amazing  difference  between  what 
they  are  in  God's  view,  and  what  they  are  in  the 
view  of  the  world.  God  sees  His  people  in  Christ. 
He  looks  at  them  through  Christ;  and  hence  He 
sees  them  "without  spot  or  wrinkle  or  any  such 
thing."  They  are  as  Christ  is  before  God.  They 
are  perfected  forever,  as  to  their  standing  in  Christ. 
"They  are  not  in  the  flesh,  but  in  the  Spirit." 

But  in  themselves,  they  are  poor,  feeble,  imperfect, 
stumbling,  inconsistent  creatures  ;  and,  inasmuch  as 
it  is  what  they  are  in  themselves,  and  that  alone, 
that  the  world  takes  knowledge  of,  therefore  it  is 
that  the  difference  seems  so  great  between  the  divine 
and  the  human  estimate. 

Yet  it  is  God's  prerogative  to  set  forth  the  beauty, 
the  dignity,  and  the  perfection  of  His  people.  It  is 
His  exclusive  prerogative,  inasmuch  as  it  is  He  Him- 
self who  has  bestowed  those  things.  They  are  only 
comely  through  the  comeliness  which  He  has  put 
upon  them,  and  it  is  therefore  due  to  Him  to  declare 
what  that  comeliness  is  ;  and,  truly,  He  does  it  in  a 
manner  worthy  of  Himself,  and  never  more  blessedly 
than  when  the  enemy  comes  forth  to  injure,  to  curse, 
or  accuse.  Thus,  when  Balak  seeks  to  curse  the 
seed  of  Abraham,  Jehovah's  word  is,  "I  have  not 


CHAPTER    XX.  215 

beheld  iniquity  in  Jacob,  neither  have  I  seen  per- 
vcrseness  in.  Israel."  " How  goodly  are  thy  tents, 
O  Jacob,  and  thy  tabernacles,  O  Israel."  Again, 
when  Satan  stands  forth  to  resist  Joshua,  the  word 
is,  "  The  Lord  rebuke  thee,  O  Satan,  ...  is  not 
this  a  brand  plucked  out  of  the  fire?"  Thus  He 
ever  puts  Himself  between  His  people  and  every 
tongue  that  would  accuse  them.  He  does  not  an- 
swer the  accusation  by  a  reference  to  what  His  peo- 
ple are  in  themselves,  or  to  what  they  are  in  the  view 
of  the  men  of  this  world,  but  to  what  He  Himself 
has  made  them,  and  where  He  set  them. 

Thus,  in  Abraham's  case,  he  might  lower  himself 
in  the  view  of  Abimelech,  king  of  Gerar,  and  Ab- 
imelech  might  have  to  rebuke  him,  yet  when  God 
comes  to  deal  with  the  case,  He  says  to  Abimelech, 
' '  Behold,  thou  art  but  a  dead  man  ; ' '  and  of  Abra- 
ham He  says,  "He  is  a  prophet,  and  he  shall  pray 
for  thee."  Yes,  with  all  "the  integrity  of  his  heart 
and  the  innocency  of  his  hands,"  the  king  of  Gerar 
was  "but  a  dead  man  ;  "  and,  moreover,  he  must  be 
a  debtor  to  the  prayers  of  the  erring  and  inconsist- 
ent stranger  for  the  restoration  of  the  health  of  his 
household.  Such  is  the  manner  of  God.  He  may 
have  many  a  secret  controversy  with  His  child,  on 
the  ground  of  his  practical  ways,  but  directly  the 
enemy  enters  a  suit  against  him,  Jehovah  ever  pleads 
His  servant's  cause. — "Touch  not  Mine  anointed, 
and  do  My  prophets  no  harm." — "He  that  toucheth 
you,  toucheth  the  apple  of  Mine  eye." — "It  is  God 
that  justifieth,  who  is  he  that  condemneth?"  No 
15 


216  GENESIS. 

dart  of  the  enemy  can  ever  penetrate  the  shield  be- 
hind which  the  Lord  has  hidden  the  very  feeblest 
lamb  of  His  blood-bought  flock.  He  hides  Plis  peo- 
ple in  His  pavilion,  sets  their  feet  upon  the  Rock  of 
Ages,  lifts  their  heads  above  their  enemies  round 
about,  and  fills  their  hearts  with  the  everlasting  joy 
of  His  salvation. 

His  name  be  praised  for  evermore  ! 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

ND  the  Lord  visited  Sarah,  as  He  had  said, 
and  He  did  unto  Sarah  as  He  had  spoken." 
Here  we  have  accomplished  promise — the  blessed 
fruit  of  patient  waiting  upon  God.  None  ever 
waited  in  vain.  The  soul  that  takes  hold  of  God's 
promise  by  faith,  has  gotten  a  stable  reality  which 
will  never  fail  him.  Thus  was  it  with  Abraham; 
thus  was  it  with  all  the  faithful  from  age  to  age  ;  and 
thus  will  it  be  with  all  those  who  are  enabled,  in  any 
measure,  to  trust  in  the  living  God.  Oh  !  it  is  a 
wonderful  blessing  to  have  God  Himself  as  our  por- 
tion and  resting-place,  amid  the  unsatisfying  shad- 
ows of  this  scene  through  which  we  are  passing, — 
to  have  our  anchor  cast  within  the  vail, — to  have  the 
word  and  oath  of  God — the  two  immutable  things — 
to  lean  upon,  for  the  comfort  and  tranquility  of  our 
souls. 

When  God's  promise  stood  before  the   soul  of 


CHAPTER    XXI.  217 

Abraham  as  an  accomplished  fact,  he  might  well 
have  learnt  the  futility  of  his  own  effort  to  reach  that 
accomplishment.  Ishmael  was  of  no  use  whatever, 
so  far  as  God's  promise  was  concerned.  He  might, 
and  did,  aiford  something  for  nature's  affections  to 
entwine  themselves  around,  thus  furnishing  a  more 
difficult  task  for  Abraham  to  perform  afterwards ; 
but  he  was  in  no  wise  conducive  to  the  development 
of  the  purpose  of  God,  or  to  the  establishment  of 
Abraham's  faith — quite  the  reverse.  Nature  can 
never  do  aught  for  God.  The  Lord  must  "visit," 
and  the  Lord  must  "do,"  and  faith  must  wait,  and 
nature  must  be  still, — yea,  must  be  entirely  set  aside 
as  a  dead,  worthless  thing,  and  then  the  divine  glory 
can  shine  out,  and  faith  find  in  that  outshining  all  its 
rich  and  sweet  reward.  "Sarah  conceived  and  bare 
Abraham  a  son  in  his  old  age,  at  the  set  time  of  which 
God  had  spoken  to  him."  There  is  such  a  thing  as 
God's  "set  time" — His  "due  season,"  and  for  this 
the  faithful  must  be  content  to  wait.  The  time  may 
seem  long,  and  hope  deferred  may  make  the  heart 
sick ;  but  the  spiritual  mind  will  ever  find  its  relief 
in  the  assurance  that  all  is  for  the  ultimate  display 
of  God's  glory.  "For  the  vision  is  for  an  appointed 
time,  but  at  the  end  it  shall  speak  and  not  lie  ;  though 
it  tarry,  wait  for  it ;  because  it  will  assuredly  come, 
it  will  not  tarry  .  .  .  but  the  just  shall  live  by  his 
faith."  (Hab.  ii.  3,  4.)  This  wondrous  faith  !  It 
brings  into  our  present  all  the  power  of  God's  future, 
and  feeds  upon  God's  promise  as  a  present  reality. 
By  its  power,  the  soul  is  kept  hanging  upon  God 


218  GENESIS. 

when  every  outward  thing  seems  to  be  against  it, 
and,  "at  the  set  time,"  the  mouth  is  filled  with 
laughter.  "Abraham  was  a  hundred  }Tears  old  when 
his  son  Isaac  was  born  unto  him."  Thus  nature  had 
nothing  to  glory  in.  "Man's  extremity  was  God's 
opportunity  ;  "  and  Sarah  said,  "  God  hath  made  me 
to  laugh. ' '  All  is  triumph  when  God  is  allowed  to 
show  Himself. 

Now,  while  the  birth  of  Isaac  filled  Sarah's  mouth 
with  laughter,  it  introduced  an  entirely  new  element 
into  Abraham's  house.  The  son  of  the  free-woman 
very  speedily  developed  the  true  character  of  the 
son  of  the  bondwoman.  Indeed,  Isaac  proved,  in 
principle,  to  be  to  the  household  of  Abraham  what 
the  implantation  of  the  new  nature  is  in  the  soul  of 
a  sinner.  It  was  not  Ishmael  changed,  but  it  was 
Isaac  born.  The  son  of  the  bondwoman  could  never 
be  anything  else  but  that.  He  might  become  a  great 
nation,  he  might  dwell  in  the  wilderness  and  become 
an  archer,  he  might  become  the  father  of  twelve 
princes,  but  he  was  the  son  of  the  bondwoman  all 
the  while.  On  the  contrary,  no  matter  how  weak 
and  despised  Isaac  might  be,  he  was  the  son  of  the 
free-woman.  His  position  and  character,  his  stand- 
ing and  prospects,  were  all  from  the  Lord.  "That 
which  is  born  of  the  flesh  is  flesh ;  and  that  which  is 
born  of  the  Spirit  is  spirit. ' ' 

Regeneration  is  not  a  change  of  the  old  nature, 
"but  the  introduction  of  a  new ; — it  is  the  implanta- 
tion of  the  nature  or  life  of  the  Second  Adam,  by 
the  operation  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  founded  upon  the 


CHAPTER    XXI.  219 

accomplished  redemption  of  Christ,  and  in  full  keep- 
ing with  the  sovereign  will  or  counsel  of  God.  The 
moment  a  sinner  believes  in  his  heart,  and  confesses 
with  his  mouth,  the  Lord  Jesus,  he  becomes  the 
possessor  of  a  new  life,  and  that  life  is  Christ.  He 
is  born  of  God,  is  a  child  of  God,  is  a  son  of  the 
free- woman.  (See  Rom.  x.  9  ;  Col.  iii.  4  ;  1  John 
iii.  1,  2;  Gal.  iii.  26;  iv.  31.) 

Nor  does  the  introduction  of  this  new  nature  alter, 
in  the  slightest  degree,  the  true,  essential  character 
of  the  old.  This  latter  continues  what  it  was,  and 
is  made  in  no  respect  better ;  yea,  rather,  there  is 
the  full  display  of  its  evil  character  in  opposition  to 
the  new  element.  "The  flesh  lusteth  against  the 
Spirit,  and  the  Spirit  against  the  flesh ;  and  these 
are  contrary  the  one  to  the  other. ' '  There  they  are 
in  all  their  distinctness,  and  the  one  is  only  thrown 
into  relief  by  the  other. 

I  believe  this  doctrine  of  the  two  natures  in  the 
believer  is  not  generally  understood;  and  yet,  so 
long  as  there  is  ignorance  of  it,  the  mind  must  be 
utterly  at  sea  in  reference  to  the  true  standing  and 
privileges  of  the  child  of  God.  Some  there  are  who 
think  that  regeneration  is  a  certain  change  which 
the  old  nature  undergoes ;  and,  moreover,  that  this 
change  is  gradual  in  its  operation,  until,  at  length, 
the  whole  man  becomes  transformed.  That  this  idea 
is  unsound,  can  be  proved  by  various  quotations 
from  the  New  Testament.  For  example,  "The  car- 
nal mind  is* enmity  against  God."  How  can  that 
which  is  thus  spoken  of  ever  undergo  any  improve- 


220  GENESIS. 

ment  ?  The  apostle  goes  on  to  say,  "It  is  not  sub- 
ject to  the  law  of  God,  neither  indeed  can  be."  If  it 
cannot  be  subject  to  the  law  of  God,  how  can  it  be 
improved  ?  how  can  it  undergo  any  change  ?  Again, 
"That  which  is  born  of  the  flesh  is  flesh."  Do  what 
3^ou  will  with  flesh,  and  it  is  flesh  all  the  while.  As 
Solomon  says,  "Though  thoti  shouldest  bray  a  fool 
in  a  mortar,  among  wheat  with  a  pestle,  yet  will  not 
his  foolishness  depart  from  him."  (Prov.  xxvii.  22.) 
There  is  no  use  in  seeking  to  make  foolishness  wise : 
you  must  introduce  heavenly  wisdom  into  the  heart 
that  has  been  heretofore  only  governed  by  folh7. 
Again,  "Ye  have  put  off  the  old  man."  (Col.  iii.  9.) 
He  does  not  say,  Ye  have  improved,  or  are  seeking 
to  improve,  "the  old  man,"  but,  Ye  have  put  it  off. 
This  gives  us  a  totally  different  idea.  There  is  a 
very  great  difference  between  seeking  to  mend  an 
old  garment,  and  casting  it  aside  altogether  and 
putting  on  a  new  one.  This  is  the  idea  of  the  lm,t- 
quoted  passage.  It  is  a  putting  off  the  old,  and  a 
putting  on  of  the  new.  Nothing  can  be  more  dis- 
tinct or  simple. 

Passages  might  easily  be  multiplied  to  prove  the 
unsoundness  of  the  theory  with  respect  to  the  grad- 
ual improvement  of  the  old  nature, — to  prove  that 
the  old  nature  is  dead  in  sins,  and  utterly  unrenew- 
able  and  unimprovable ;  and,  moreover,  that  the 
only  thing  we  can  do  with  it  is  to  keep  it  under  our 
feet  in  the  power  of  that  new  life  which  we  have  in 
union  with  our  risen  Head  in  the  heavens. 

The  birth  of  Isaac  did  not  improve  Ishmael,  but 


CHAPTER    XXI.  221 

only  brought  out  his  real  opposition  to  the  child  of 
promise.  He  might  have  gone  on  very  quietly  and 
orderly  till  Isaac  made  his  appearance  ;  but  then  he 
showed  what  he  was,  by  persecuting  and  mocking  at 
the  child  of  resurrection.  What  then  was  the  rem- 
edy ?  to  make  Ishmael  better  ?  By  no  means  ;  but, 
4 'Cast  out  this  bondwoman  and  her  son  ;  for  the  son 
of  this  bondwoman  shall  not  be  heir  with  my  son, 
even  with  Isaac.  "(8-10. )  Here  was  the  only  remedy. 
"That  which  is  crooked  cannot  be  made  straight ;  " 
therefore  j^ou  have  only  to  get  rid  of  the  crooked 
thing  altogether,  and  occupy  yourself  with  that 
which  is  divinely  straight.  It  is  labor  lost  to  seek  to 
make  a  crooked  thing  straight.  Hence  all  efforts 
after  the  improvement  of  nature  are  utterly  futile,  so 
far  as  God  is  concerned.  It  may  be  all  very  well  for 
men  to  cultivate  and  improve  that  which  is  of  use  to 
themselves ;  but  God  has  given  His  children  some- 
thing infinitely  better  to  do,  even  to  cultivate  that 
which  is  His  own  creation,  the  fruits  of  which,  while 
they  in  no  wise  serve  to  exalt  nature,  are  entirely  to 
His  praise  and  glory. 

Now  the  error  into  which  the  Galatian  churches 
fell,  was  the  introduction  of  that  which  addressed 
itself  to  nature.  "Except  ye  be  circumcised  after 
the  manner  of  Moses,  ye  cannot  be  saved."  Here 
salvation  was  made  to  depend  upon  something  that 
man  could  be,  or  man  could  do,  or  man  could  keep. 
This  was  upsetting  the  wrhole  glorious  fabric  of  re- 
demption, which,  as  the  believer  knows,  rests  exclu- 
sively upon  what  Christ  is,  and  what  He  has  done. 


222  GENESIS. 

To  make  salvation  dependent,  in  the  most  remote 
manner,  upon  anything  in,  or  done  by,  man,  is  to 
set  it  entirely  aside.  In  other  words,  Ishmael  must 
be  entirely  cast  out,  and  all  Abraham's  hopes  be 
made  to  depend  upon  what  God  had  done  and  given 
in  the  person  of  Isaac.  This,  it  is  needless  to  say, 
leaves  man  nothing  to  glory  in.  If  present  or  future 
blessedness  were  made  to  depend  upon  even  a  divine 
change  wrought  in  nature,  flesh  might  glory.  Though 
my  nature  were  improved,  it  would  be  something  of 
me,  and  thus  God  would  not  have  all  the  glory.  But 
when  I  am  introduced  into  a  new  creation,  I  find  it 
is  all  of  God, — designed,  matured,  developed  by 
Himself  alone.  God  is  the  actor,  and  I  am  a  wor- 
shiper ;  He  is  the  blesser,  and  I  am  the  blessed ;  He 
is  "the  better,"  and  I  am  "the  less"  (Heb.  vii.  7.)  ; 
He  is  the  giver,  and  I  am  the  receiver.  This  is  what 
makes  Christianity  what  it  is ;  and,  moreover,  dis- 
tinguishes it  from  every  system  of  human  religion 
under  the  sun,  whether  it  be  Romanism,  Pnseyism, 
or  any  other  ism  whatsoever.  Human  religion  gives 
the  creature  a  place,  more  or  less ;  it  keeps  the 
bondwoman  and  her  son  in  the  house  ;  it  gives  man 
something  to  glory  in.  On  the  contrary,  Christianity 
excludes  the  creature  from  all  interference  in  the 
work  of  salvation, — casts  out  the  bondwoman  and 
her  son,  and  gives  all  the  glory  to  Him  to  whom 
alone  it  is  due. 

But  let  us  inquire  who  this  bondwoman  and  her 
son  really  are,  and  what  they  shadow  forth.  Gala- 
tians  iv  furnishes  ample  teaching  as  to  these  two 


CHAPTER    XXI.  223 

points.  In  a  word,  then,  the  bondwoman  represents 
the  covenant  of  the  law ;  and  her  son  represents  all 
who  are  "of  works  of  law,"  or  on  that  principle 
[s£  Epyoov  vofj.ov\.  This  is  very  plain.  The  bond- 
woman only  genders  to  bondage,  and  can  never 
bring  forth  a  free  man.  How  can  she  ?  The  law 
never  could  give  liberty ;  for  so  long  as  a  man  was 
alive,  it  ruled  him.  (Rom.  vii.  1.)  I  can  never  be 
free  so  long  as  I  am  under  the  dominion  of  any  one  ; 
but  while  I  live,  the  law  rules  me,  and  nothing  but 
death  can  give  me  deliverance  from  its  dominion. 
This  is  the  blessed  doctrine  of  Rom.  vii. — "Where- 
fore, my  brethren,  ye  also  are  become  dead  to  the 
law  by  the  body  of  Christ,  that  }'e  should  be  married 
to  another,  even  to  Him  that  is  raised  from  the  dead, 
that  we  should  bring  forth  fruit  unto  God."  This 
is  freedom  ;  for  "if  the  Son  shall  make  3^011  free,  ye 
shall  be  free  indeed."  (John  viii.  36.)  "So  then, 
brethren,  we  are  not  children  of  the  bondwoman, 
but  of  the  free."  (Gal.  iv.  31.) 

Now,  it  is  in  the  power  of  this  freedom  that  we 
are  enabled  to  obey  the  command,  "Cast  out  this 
bondwoman  and  her  son."  If  I  am  not  consciously 
free,  I  shall  be  seeking  to  attain  liberty  in  the  strang- 
est way  possible,  even  by  keeping  the  bondwoman 
in  the  house :  in  other  words,  I  shall  be  seeking  to 
get  life  by  keeping  the  law ;  I  shall  be  establishing 
my  own  righteousness.  No  doubt  it  will  involve  a 
struggle  to  cast  out  this  element  of  bondage,  for 
legalism  is  natural  to  our  hearts.  "The  tiling  was 
very  grievous  in  Abraham's  sight,  because  of  his 


224  GENESIS. 

son."  Still,  however  grievous  it  may  be,  it  is  ac- 
cording to  the  divine  mind  that  we  should  abidingly 
"stand  fast  in  the  liberty  wherewith  Christ  hath 
made  us  free,  and  not  be  entangled  again  with  the 
yoke  of  bondage."  (Gal.  v.  1.)  May  we,  beloved 
reader,  so  fully  and  experimentally  enter  into  the 
blessedness  of  God's  provision  for  us  in  Christ,  that 
we  may  be  done  with  all  thoughts  about  the  flesh, 
and  all  that  it  can  be,  do,  or  produce.  There  is  a 
fullness  in  Christ  which  renders  all  appeal  to  nature 
utterly  superfluous  and  vain. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

A  BRAHAM  is  now  in  a  fit  moral  position  to  have 
-£-*•  his  heart  put  to  a  most  severe  test.  The  long- 
cherished  reserve  being  put  forth  from  his  heart,  in 
chap,  xx, — the  bondwoman  and  her  son  being  put 
forth  from  his  house,  as  in  chap,  xxi, — he  now 
stands  forth  in  the  most  honored  position  in  which 
any  soul  can  be  placed,  and  that  is  a  position  of 
trial  from  the  hand  of  God  Himself.  There  are 
various  kinds  of  trial ; — trial  from  the  hand  of  Sa- 
tan ;  trial  from  surrounding  circumstances  ;  but  the 
highest  character  of  trial  is  that  which  comes  directly 
from  the  hand  of  God,  when  He  puts  His  dear  child 
into  the  furnace  for  the  purpose  of  testing  the  reality 
of  his  faith.  God  will  do  this:  He  must  have 
reality.  It  will  not  do  to  say,  "Lord,  Lord,"  or, 


*  CHAPTER    XXII.  225 

"I  go,  sir."  The  heart  must  be  probed  to  the  very 
bottom,  in  order  that  no  element  of  hypocrisy  or 
false  profession  may  be  allowed  to  lodge  there.  "My 
son,  give  Me  thine  heart."  He  does  not  say,  Give 
Me  thine  head,  or  thine  intellect,  or  thy  talents,  or 
thy  tongue,  or  thy  money;  but,  "Give  Me  thine 
heart:"  and  in  order  to  prove  the  sincerity  of  our 
response  to  this  gracious  command,  He  will  lay  His 
hand  upon  something  very  near  our  hearts.  Thus 
he  says  to  Abraham,  "Take  now  thy  son,  thine  only 
son  Isaac,  whom  thou  lovest,  and  get  thee  into  the 
land  of  Moriah,  and  offer  him  there  for  a  burnt-offer- 
ing, upon  one  of  the  mountains  which  I  will  tell  thee 
of."  This  was  coming  very  close  to  Abraham's 
heart :  it  was  passing  him  through  a  searching  cru- 
cible indeed.  God  "requires  truth  in  the  inward 
parts."  There  may  be  much  truth  on  the  lips,  and 
much  in  the  intellect,  but  God  looks  for  it  in  the 
heart.  It  is  no  ordinary  proof  that  will  satisfy  God, 
as  to  the  love  of  our  hearts.  He  Himself  did  not 
rest  satisfied  with  giving  an  ordinary  proof.  He 
gave  His  Son,  and  we  should  aim  at  giving  very 
striking  proofs  of  our  love  to  Him  who  so  loved  us, 
even  when  we  were  dead  in  trespasses  and  sins. 

However,  it  is  well  to  see  that  God  confers  a  sig- 
nal honor  upon  us  when  He  thus  tests  our  hearts. 
We  never  read  that  the  Lord  did  tempt  Lot.  No ; 
Sodom  tempted  Lot.  He  never  reached  a  sufficiently 
high  elevation  to  warrant  his  being  tried  by  the 
hand  of  Jehovah.  It  was  too  plainly  manifest  that 
there  was  plenty  between  his  heart  and  the  Lord, 


226  GENESIS. 

and  it  did  not,  therefore,  require  the  furnace  to 
bring  that  out.  Sodom  would  have  held  out  no 
temptation  whatever  to  Abraham.  This  was  made 
manifest  in  his  interview  with  Sodom's  king,  in 
chapter  xiv.  God  knew  well  that  Abraham  loved 
Him  far  better  than  Sodom  ;  but  He  would  make  it 
manifest  that  he  loved  Him  better  than  any  one  or 
anything,  by  laying  His  hand  upon  the  nearest  and 
dearest  object. — "Take  now  thy  son,  thine  only  son 
Isaac."  Yes,  Isaac,  the  child  of  promise, — Isaac, 
the  object  of  long-deferred  hope,  the  object  of  pa- 
rental love,  and  the  one  in  whom  all  the  kindreds  of 
the  earth  were  to  be  blessed, — this  Isaac  must  be 
offered  as  a  burnt-offering.  This,  surely,  was  putting 
faith  to  the  test,  in  order  that,  being  more  precious 
than  gold  that  perisheth,  though  it  be  tried  with  fire, 
it  might  be  found  unto  praise  and  honor  and  glory. 
Had  Abraham's  whole  soul  not  been  stayed  simply 
on  the  Lord,  he  never  could  have  yielded  unhesitat- 
ing obedience  to  such  a  searching  command ;  but 
God  Himself  was  the  living  and  abiding  support  of 
his  heart,  and  therefore  he  was  prepared  to  give  up 
all  for  Him. 

The  soul  that  has  found  all  its  springs  in  God, 
can,  without  any  demur,  retire  from  all  creature 
streams.  We  can  give  up  the  creature  just  in  pro- 
portion as  wre  have  found  out,  or  become  experi- 
mentally acquainted  with,  the  Creator,  and  no  fur- 
ther. To  attempt  to  give  up  the  visible  things  in 
any  other  way  save  in  the  energy  of  that  faith  which 
lays  hold  of  the  invisible,  is  the  most  fruitless  labor 


CHAPTER    XXII.  227 

possible.  It  cannot  be  done.  I  will  hold  fast  my 
Isaac  until  I  have  found  my  all  in  God.  It  is  when 
we  are  enabled,  by  faith,  to  say,  "God  is  our  refuge 
and  strength,  a  very  present  help  in  trouble,"  that 
we  can  also  add,  "Therefore  will  we  not  fear,  though 
the  earth  be  removed,  and  though  the  mountains  be 
carried  into  the  midst  of  the  sea."  (Ps.  xlvi.  1,  2.) 

"And  Abraham  rose  up  early  in  the  morning." 
There  is  ready  obedience.  "I  made  haste  and 
delayed  not  to  keep  Thy  commandments."  Faith 
never  stops  to  look  at  circumstances,  or  ponder  re- 
sults ;  it  only  looks  at  God  ;  it  expresses  itself  thus : 
"But  when  it  pleased  God,  who  separated  me  from 
my  mother's  womb,  and  called  me  by  His  grace,  to 
reveal  His  Son  in  me,  that  I  might  preach  Him 
among  the  gentiles ;  immediately  I  conferred  not 
with  flesh  and  blood."  (Gal.  i.  15,  16.)  The  moment 
we  confer  with  flesh  and  blood,  our  testimony  and 
service  are  marred,  for  flesh  and  blood  can  never 
obey.  We  must  rise  early,  and  carry  out,  through 
grace,  the  divine  command.  Thus  we  are  blessed, 
and  God  is  glorified.  Having  God's  own  Word  as 
the  basis  of  our  acting,  will  ever  impart  strength  and 
stability  to  our  acting.  If  we  merely  act  from  im- 
pulse, when  the  impulse  subsides,  the  acting  will 
subside  also. 

There  are  two  things  needful  to  a  course  of  steady 
and  consistent  action,  viz.,  the  Holy  Ghost  as  the 
power  of  action,  and  the  Word  to  give  proper  direc- 
tion. To  use  a  familiar  illustration, — on  a  railway, 
we  should  find  steam  of  little  use  without  the  iron 


228  GENESIS. 

rails  firmly  laid  down :  the  former  is  the  power  by 
which  we  move  ;  and  the  latter,  the  direction.  It  is 
needless  to  add  that  the  rails  would  be  of  little  use 
without  the  steam.  Now  Abraham  was  blessed  with 
both.  He  had  the  power  of  action  conferred  by 
God,  and  the  command  to  act  given  by  God  also. 
His  devotedness  was  of  a  most  definite  character; 
and  this  is  deeply  important.  We  frequently  find 
much  that  looks  like  devotedness,  but  which,  in 
reality,  is  but  the  desultory  activity  of  a  will  not 
brought  under  the  powerful  action  of  the  Word  of 
God.  All  such  apparent  devotedness  is  worthless, 
and  the  spirit  from  which  it  proceeds  will  very 
speedily  evaporate.  We  may  lay  down  the  follow- 
ing principle;  viz.,  whenever  devotedness  passes 
beyond  divinely-appointed  bounds,  it  is  suspicious ; 
if  it  comes  not  up  to  these  bounds,  it  is  defective ; 
if  it  flows  without  them,  it  is  erratic.  I  quite  admit 
that  there  are  extraordinary  operations  and  ways  of 
the  Spirit  of  God,  in  which  He  asserts  His  own 
sovereignty,  and  rises  above  ordinary  bounds ;  but, 
in  such  cases,  the  evidence  of  divine  activity  will  be 
sufficiently  strong  to  carry  home  conviction  to  every 
spiritual  mind ;  nor  will  they,  in  the  slightest  degree, 
interfere  with  the  truth  of  the  principle  that  true 
devotedness  will  ever  be  founded  upon  and  governed 
by  divine  principle.  To  sacrifice  a  son  might  seem 
to  be  an  act  of  most  extraordinary  devotedness,  but 
be  it  remembered,  that  what  gave  that  act  all  its 
value  in  God's  sight  was  the  simple  fact  of  its  being 
based  upon  God's  command. 


CHAPTER    XXII.  229 

Then  we  have  another  thing  connected  with  true 
devotedness,  and- that  is,  a. spirit  of  worship. — "I 
and  the  lad  will  go  yonder  and  worship."  The 
really-devoted  servant  will  keep  his  eye  not  on  his 
service,  be  it  ever  so  great,  but  on  the  Master,  and 
this  will  produce  a  spirit  of  worship.  If  I  love  my 
master  according  to  the  flesh,  I  shall  not  mind 
whether  I  am  cleaning  his  shoes  or  driving  his  car- 
riage ;  but  if  I  am  thinking  more  of  myself  than  of 
him,  I  shall  rather  be  a  coachman  than  a  shoeblack. 
So  is  it  precisely  in  the  service  of  the  heavenly 
Master ; — if  I  am  thinking  only  of  Him,  planting 
churches  and  making  tents  will  be  both  alike  to  me. 
We  may  see  the  same  thing  in  angelic  ministry.  It 
matters  not  to  an  angel  whether  he  be  sent  to  de- 
stroy an  army  or  to  protect  the  person  of  some  heir 
of  salvation ;  it  is  the  Master  who  entirely  fills  his 
vision.  As  some  one  has  remarked,  "if  two  angels 
were  sent  from  heaven,  one  to  rule  an  empire,  and 
the  other  to  sweep  the  streets,  they  would  not  dis- 
pute about  their  respective  work."  This  is  most 
true,  and  so  should  it  be  with  us.  The  servant 
should  ever  be  combined  with  the  worshiper,  and  the 
works  of  our  hands  perfumed  with  the  ardent  breath- 
ings of  our  spirits.  In  other  words,  we  should  go 
forth  to  our  work  in  the  spirit  of  those  memorable 
words,  "I  and  the  lad  will  go  yonder  and  worship." 
This  would  effectually  preserve  us  from  that  merely 
mechanical  service  into  which  we  are  so  prone  to 
drop  ;  doing  things  for  doing's  sake,  and  being  more 
occupied  with  our  work  than  with  our  Master.  All 


230  GENESIS. 

must  flow  from  simple  faith  in  God,  and  obedience 
to  His  Word. 

"By  faith  Abraham,  when  he  was  tried,  offered  up 
Isaac  ;  and  he  that  had  received  the  promises  offered 
up  his  only  begotten."  (Heb.  xi.  17.)  It  is  only  as 
we  are  walking  by  faith  that  we  can  begin,  continue, 
and  end  our  works  in  God.  Abraham  not  merely 
set  out  to  offer  his  son,  but  he  went  on  and  reached 
the  spot  which  God  had  appointed.  "And Abraham 
took  the  wood  of  the  burnt-offering,  and  laid  it  upon 
Isaac  his  son  ;  and  he  took  the  fire  in  his  hand,  and 
a  knife;  and  they  went  both  of  them  together." 
And  further  on  we  read,  "And  Abraham  built  an 
altar  there,  and  laid  the  wood  in  order,  and  bound 
Isaac  his  son,  and  laid  him  on  the  altar  upon  the 
wood.  And  Abraham  stretched  forth  his  hand,  and 
took  the  knife  to  slay  his  son."  This  was  real  work, 
a  "work  of  faith  and  labor  of  love"  in  the  highest 
sense.  It  was  no  mere  mockery — no  drawing  near 
with  the  lips,  while  the  heart  was  far  off, — no  saying, 
"  'I  go,  sir,'  and  went  not."  It  was  all  deep  reality, 
just  such  as  faith  ever  delights  to  produce,  and  which 
God  delights  to  accept.  It  is  easy  to  make  a  show 
of  devotedness  when  there  is  _no  demand  for  it, — it 
is  easy  to  say,  "Though  all  shall  be  offended  be- 
cause of  Thee,  yet  will  I  never  be  offended  .... 
though  I  should  die  with  Thee,  yet  will  I  not  deny 
Thee;"  but  the  point  is  to  stand  the  trial.  When 
Peter  was  put  to  the  test,  he  entirely  broke  down. 
Faith  never  talks  of  what  it  will  do,  but  does  what 
it  can  in  the  strength  of  the  Lord.  Nothing  can  be 


CHAPTER    XXII.  231 

more  thoroughly  worthless  than  a  spirit  of  empty 
pretension.  It  is  just  as  worthless  as  the  basis  on 
which  it  rests.  But  faith  acts  "when  it  is  tried;  " 
till  then  it  is  content  to  be  unseen  and  silent. 

Now,  it  needs  hardly  to  be  remarked  that  God  is 
glorified  in  those  holy  activities  of  faith ;  He  is  the 
immediate  object  of  them,  as  He  is  the  spring  from 
whence  they  emanate.  There  was  not  a  scene  in 
Abraham's  entire  history  in  which  God  was  so  much 
glorified  as  the  scene  on  Mount  Moriah.  There  it 
was  that  he  was  enabled  to  bear  testimony  to  the 
fact  that  he  had  found  all  his  fresh  springs  in  God — 
found  them  not  merely  previous  to,  but  after,  Isaac's 
birth.  This  is  a  most  touching  point.  It  is  one 
thing  to  rest  in  God's  blessings,  and  another  thing 
to  rest  in  Himself:  it  is  one  thing  to  trust  God  when 
I  have  before  my  eyes  the  channel  through  which 
the  blessing  is  to  flow,  and  quite  another  thing  to 
trust  Him  when  that  channel  is  entirely  stopped  up. 
This  was  what  proved  the  excellency  of  Abraham's 
faith.  He  showed  that  he  could  not  merely  trust 
God  for  an  innumerable  seed  while  Isaac  stood  be- 
fore him  in  health  and  vigor,  but  just  as  fully  if  he 
..were  a  smoking  victim  on  the  altar.  This  was  a  high 
order  of  confidence  in  God, — it  was  unalloyed  con- 
fidence ;  it  was  not  a  confidence  propped  up  in  part 
by  the  Creator  and  in  part  by  the  creature.  No  ;  it 
rested  on  one-  solid  pedestal,  viz.,  God  Himself. 
4 'He  accounted  that  God  was  able."  He  never  ac- 
counted that  Isaac  was  able.  Isaac,  without  God, 
was  nothing:  God,  without  Isaac,  was  everything. 
16 


232  GENESIS. 

This  is  a  principle  of  the  very  last  importance,  and 
one  eminently  calculated  to  test  the  heart  most 
keenly.  Does  it  make  any  difference  to  me  to  see 
the  apparent  channel  of  all  my  blessings  dried  up  ? 
Am  I  dwelling  sufficiently  near  the  fountain-head  to 
be  able,  with  a  worshiping  spirit,  to  behold  all  the 
creature  streams  dried  up  ?  This  I  do  feel  to  be  a 
searching  question.  Have  I  such  a  simple  view  of 
God's  sufficiency  as  to  be  able,  as  it  were,  to 
"stretch  forth  my  hand  and  take  the  knife  to  slay 
my  son"?  Abraham  was  enabled  to  do  this,  be- 
cause his  eye  rested  on  the  God  of  resurrection, — 
4 '  he  accounted  that  God  was  able  to  raise  him  up 
even  from  the  dead." 

In  a  word,  it  was  with  God  he  had  to  do,  and  that 
was  quite  enough.  He  was  not  suffered  to  strike  the 
blow.  He  had  gone  to  the  very  utmost  bounds  ;  he 
had  come  up  to  the  line  beyond  which  God  could  not 
suffer  him  to  go.  The  blessed  One  spared  the  fa- 
ther's heart  the  pang  which  He  did  not  spare  His 
own  heart,  even  that  of  smiting  His  Son.  He, 
blessed  be  His  name,  passed  beyond  the  utmost 
bounds,  for  "He  spared  not  His  own  Son,  but  de- 
livered Him  up  for  us  all. "  "It  pleased  the  Lord 
to  bruise  Him  ;  He  hath  put  Him  to  grief. ' '  There 
was  no  voice  from  heaven  when,  on  Calvary,  the 
Father  offered  up  His  only  begotten  Son.  No ;  it 
wTas  a  perfectly-accomplished  sacrifice,  and  in  its 
accomplishment  our  everlasting  peace  is  sealed. 

However,  Abraham's  devotedness  was  fully  proved 
and  fully  accepted.  "For  now  I  know  that  thou 


CHAPTER    XXII.  233 

fearest  God,  seeing  thou  hast  not  withheld  thy  son, 
thine  only  son,  from  Me."  Mark,  it  is  '•'•now  I 
know."  It  had  never  been  proved  before.  It  was 
there,  no  doubt,  and  if  there,  God  knew  it ;  but  the 
valuable  point  here  is,  that  God  founds  His  knowl- 
edge of  it  upon  the  palpable  evidence  afforded  at  the 
altar  upon  Mount  Moriah.  Faith  is  always  proved 
by  action,  and  the  fear  of  God  by  the  fruits  which 
flow  from  it.  "Was  not  Abraham  our  father  justi- 
fied by  works  when  he  had  offered  Isaac  his  son  on 
the  altar?"  (James  ii.  21.)  Who  could  think  of 
calling  his  faith  in  question  ?  Take  away  faith,  and 
Abraham  appears  on  Moriah  as  a  murderer  and  a 
madman  :  take  faith  into  account,  and  he  appears  as 
a  devoted  worshiper — a  God-fearing,  justified  man. 
But  faith  must  be  proved.  "What  doth  it  profit, 
my  brethren,  though  a  man  say  he  hath  faith,  and 
have  not  works  ?"  (James  ii.  14.)  Will  either  God 
or  man  be  satisfied  with  a  powerless  and  profitless 
profession  ?  Surely  not.  God  looks  for  reality,  and 
honors  it  where  Pie  sees  it ;  and  as  for  man,  he  can 
understand  naught  save  the  living  and  intelligible 
utterance  of  a  faith  that  shows  itself  in  acts.  We 
Sre  surrounded  by  the  profession  of  religion, — the 
phraseology  of  faith  is  on  every  lip ;  but  faith  itself 
is  as  rare  a  gem  as  ever — that  faith  which  will  enable 
a  man  to  push  out  from  the  shore  of  present  circum- 
stances, and  meet  the  waves  and  the  winds,  and  not 
only  meet  them,  but  endure  them,  'even  though  the 
Master  should  seem  to  be  asleep  on  the  pillow. 
And  here  I  would  remark  the  beautiful  harmony 


234  GENESIS. 

between  St.  James  and  St.  Paul,  on  the  subject  of 
justification.  The  intelligent  and  spiritual  reader, 
who  bows  to  the  important  truth  of  the  plenary  in- 
spiration of  Holy  Scripture,  knows  full  well  that  on 
this  question  it  is  not  with  Paul  or  James  we  have  to 
do,  but  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  graciously  used 
each  of  those  honored  men  as  the  pen  to  write  His 
thoughts,  just  as  I  might  take  up  a  quill  pen  or  a 
steel  pen  to  write  my  thoughts,  in  which  case  it 
would  be  quite  preposterous  to  speak  of  a  discrep- 
ancy between  the  two  pens,  inasmuch  as  the  writer 
is  one.  Hence  it  is  just  as  impossible  that  two 
divinely-inspired  penmen  could  clash,  as  that  two 
heavenly  bodies,  while  moving  in  their  divinely- 
appointed  orbits,  could  come  into  collision. 

But,  in  reality,  as  might  be  expected,  there  is  the 
fullest  and  most  perfect  harmony  between  those  two 
apostles  ;  indeed,  on  the  subject  of  justification,  the 
one  is  the  counterpart  or  exponent  of  the  other. 
St.  Paul  gives  us  the  inward  principle ;  St.  James, 
the  outward  development  of  that  principle.  The 
former  presents  the  hidden  life  ;  the  latter,  the  mani- 
fested life :  the  former  looks  at  man  in  relation  to 
God  ;  the  latter  looks  at  him  in  his  relation  to  man. 
Now  we  want  both :  the  inward  would  not  do  with- 
out the  outward,  and  the  outward  would  be  valueless 
and  powerless  without  the  inward.  "Abraham  was 
justified"  when  "he  believed  God,"  and  "Abraham 
was  justified"  when  "he  offered  Isaac  his  son."  In 
the  former  case,  we  have  his  secret  standing ;  in  the 
latter,  his  public  acknowledgment  by  heaven  and 


CHAPTER    XXII.  235 

earth.  It  is  well  to  understand  this  distinction. 
There  was  no  voice  from  heaven  when  "Abraham 
believed  God,"  though  in  God's  view  he  was  there, 
then,  and  thus  "counted  righteous  ;  "  but  "when  he 
had  offered  his  son  upon  the  altar,"  God  could  say, 
"Now  I  know,"  and  all  the  world  had  a  powerful 
and  unanswerable  proof  of  the  fact  that  Abraham 
was  a  justified  man.  Thus  it  will  ever  be.  Where 
there  is  the  inward  principle,  there  will  be  the  out- 
ward acting ;  but  all  the  value  of  the  latter  springs 
from  its  connection  with  the  former.  Disconnect, 
for  one  moment,  Abraham's  acting,  as  set  forth  by 
St.  James,  from  Abraham's  faith,  as  set  forth  by  St. 
Paul,  and  what  justifying  virtue  did  it  possess  ? 
None  whatever.  All  its  value,  all  its  efficacy,  all  its 
virtue,  springs  from  the  fact  that  it  was  the  outward 
manifestation  of  that  faith,  by  virtue  of  which  he 
had  been  already  counted  righteous  before  God. 
Thus  much  as  to  the  admirable  harmony  between 
St.  Paul  and  St.  James,  or  rather,  as  to  the  unity  of 
the  voice  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  whether  that  voice  be 
uttered  by  St.  Paul  or  St.  James. 

We  now  return  to  our  chapter.  It  is  deeply  in- 
teresting to  mark  here  how  Abraham's  soul  is  led 
into  a  fresh  discovery  of  God's  character  by  the 
trial  of  his  faith.  When  we  are  enabled  to  bear  the 
testings  of  God's  own  hand,  it  is  sure  to  lead  us  into 
some  new  experience  with  respect  to  His  character, 
which  makes  vis  to  know  how  valuable  the  testing  is. 
If  Abraham  had  not  stretched  out  his  hand  to  slay 
his  son,  he  never  would  have  known  the  rich  and 


236  GENESIS. 

exquisite  depths  of  that  title  which  he  here  bestows 
upon  God,  viz.,  "  Jehovah-jireh."  It  is  only  when 
we  are  really  put  to  the  test  that  we  discover  what 
God  is.  Without  trial,  we  can  be  but  theorists,  and 
God  would  not  have  us  such :  He  would  have  us 
entering  into  the  living  depths  that  are  in  Himself — 
the  divine  realities  of  personal  communion  with  Him. 
With  what  different  feelings  and  convictions  must 
Abraham  have  retraced  his  steps  from  Moriah  to 
Beer-sheba  ! — from  the  mount  of  the  Lord  to  the 
well  of  the  oath  !  What  very  different  thoughts  of 
God  !  What  different  thoughts  of  Isaac  !  What 
different  thoughts  of  everything  !  Truly  we  may 
say,  "Happy  is  the  man  that  endureth  trial."  It  is 
an  honor  put  upon  one  by  the  Lord  Himself,  and  the 
deep  blessedness  of  the  experience  to  which  it  leads 
cannot  be  easiry  estimated.  It  is  when  men  are 
brought  (to  use  the  language  of  the  one  hundred 
and  seventh  Psalm,)  "to  their  wit's  end,"  that  they 
discover  wrhat  God  is.  Oh,  for  grace  to  endure  trial, 
that  God's  workmanship  may  appear,  and  His  name 
be  glorified  in  us ! 

There  is  one  point  which,  before  closing  my  re- 
marks on  this  chapter,  I  shall  notice,  and  that  is, 
the  gracious  way  in  which  God  gives  Abraham  credit 
for  having  done  the  act  which  he  had  showed  himself 
so  fully  prepared  to  do.  ' '  '  By  Myself  have  I  sworn,* 
saith  the  Lord  ;  '  for  because  thon  hast  done  this  thing, 
and  hast  not  withheld  tlry  son,  tliine  only  son,  that 
in  blessing,  I  will  bless  thee,  and  in  multiplying,  I 
will  multiply  thy  seed  as  the  stars  of  heaven,  and  as 


CHAPTER    XXII.  237 

the  sand  which  is  upon  the  sea-shore  ;  and  thy  seed 
shall  possess  the  gate  of  his  enemies;  and  in  thy 
seed  shall  all  the  nations  of  the  earth  be  blessed: 
because  thoti  hast  obeyed  My  voice.'  "  This  beau- 
tifully corresponds  with  the  Spirit's  notice  of  Abra- 
ham's acting,  as  put  before  us  in  Hebrews  xi,  and 
also  in  James  ii,  in  both  of  which  scriptures  he  is 
looked  upon  as  having  offered  Isaac  his  son  upon 
the  altar.  The  grand  principle  conve}Ted  in  the 
whole  matter  is  this :  Abraham  proved  that  he  was 
prepared  to  have  the  scene  entirely  cleared  of  all  but 
God ;  and,  moreover,  it  was  this  same  principle 
which  both  constituted  and  proved  him  a  justified 
man.  Faith  can  do  without  every  one  and  every- 
thing but  God.  It  has  the  full  sense  of  His  suffi- 
ciency, and  can  therefore  let  go  all  beside.  Hence 
Abraham  could  rightly  estimate  the  words,  "By 
Myself  have  I  sworn."  Yes,  this  wondrous  word, 
"Myself,"  was  everything  to  the  man  of  faith. 
"ForwThen  God  made  promise  to  Abraham,  because 
He  could  swear  by  no  greater,  He  sware  by  Himself. 

For  men  verily  swear  by  the  greater,  and 

an  oath  for  confirmation  is  to  them  an  end  of  all 
strife.  Wherein  God,  willing  more  abundantly  to 
show  unto  the  heirs  of  promise  the  immutability  of 
His  counsel,  confirmed  it  by  an  oath."  The  word 
and  oath  of  the  living  God  should  put  an  end  to  all 
the  strivings  and  workings  of  the  human  will,  and 
form  the  immovable  anchor  of  the  soul  amid  all  the 
tossing  and  tumult  of  this  stormy  world. 

Now,  we  must  condemn  ourselves  constantly,  be- 


238  GENESIS. 

cause  of  the  little  power  which  the  promise  of  God 
has  in  our  hearts.  There  it  is,  and  we  profess  to 
believe  it ;  but,  ah  !  it  is  not  that  deep,  abiding,  in- 
fluential reality  which  it  ought  ever  to  be  ;  we  do  not 
draw  from  it  that  "strong  consolation"  which  it  is 
calculated  to  afford.  How  little  prepared  are  we, 
in  the  power  of  faith  in  the  promise  of  God,  to  slay 
our  Isaac  !  We  need  to  cry  to  God  that  He  would 
be  graciously  pleased  to  endow  us  with  a  deeper 
insight  into  the  blessed  reality  of  a  life  of  faith  in 
Himself,  that  so  we  may  understand  better  the  im- 
port of  that  word  of  St.  John — "This  is  the  victory 
that  overcometh  the  world,  even  our  faith."  We 
can  only  overcome  the  world  by  faith.  Unbelief 
puts  us  under  the  power  of  present  things  ;  in  other 
words,  it  gives  the  world  the  victory  over  us.  A 
soul  that  has  entered,  by  the  teaching  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  into  the  sense  of  God's  sufficiency,  is  en- 
tirely independent  of  things  here.  Beloved  reader, 
may  we  know  this,  for  our  peace  and  joy  in  God, 
and  His  glory  in  us. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

HHHIS  little  section  of  inspiration  furnishes  much 
J-  sweet  and  profitable  instruction  to  the  soul.  In 
it  the  Holy  Spirit  sets  before  us  a  beautiful  exhibi- 
tion of  the  mode  in  which  the  man  of  faith  should 
carry  himself  toward  those  that  are  without.  While 
it  is  true — divinely  true — that  faith  makes  a  man 


CHAPTER    XXIII.  3'J 

independent  of  the  men  of  the  world,  it  is  no  less 
true  that  faith  will  ever  teach  him  to  walk  honestly 
toward  them.  We  are  told  to  "walk  honestly  toward 
them  that  are  without"  (1  Thess.  iv.  12.),  "to  pro- 
vide things  honest  in  the  sight  of  all"  (2  Cor.  viii. 
21.),  to  "owe  no  man  anything"  (Rom.  xiii.  8.). 
These  are  weighty  precepts, — precepts  which,  even 
before  their  distinct  enunciation,  were  duly  observed 
in  all  ages  by  the  faithful  servants  of  Christ,  but 
which  in  modern  times,  alas  !  have  not  been  suffi- 
ciently attended  to. 

The  twenty-third  of  Genesis,  therefore,  is  worthy 
of  special  notice.  It  opens  with  the  death  of  Sarah, 
and  introduces  Abraham  in  a  new  character,  viz., 
that  of  a  moiTrner. — "Abraham  came  to  mourn  for 
Sarah,  and  to  weep  for  her."  The  child  of  God 
must  meet  such  things,  but  he  must  not  meet  them 
as  others.  The  great  fact  of  resurrection  comes  in 
to  his  relief,  and  imparts  a  character  to  his  sorrow 
quite  peculiar.  (1  Thess.  iv.  13,  14.)  The  man  of 
faith  can  stand  at  the  grave  of  a  brother  or  sister  in 
the  happy  consciousness  that  it  shall  not  long  hold 
its  captive,  "for  if  we  believe  that  Jesus  died  and 
rose  again,  even  so  them  also  which  sleep  in  Jesus 
will  God  bring  with  Him."  The  redemption  of  the 
soul  secures  the  redemption  of  the  body :  the  former, 
we  have ;  the  latter,  we  wait  for.  (Rom.  viii.  23.) 

Now,  I  believe  that  in  purchasing  Machpelah  for 
a  bury  ing- place,  Abraham  gave  expression  to  his 
faith  in  resurrection,  uHe  stood  up  from  before  his 
dead."  Faith  cannot  long  keep  death  in  view;  it 


240  GENESIS. 

has  a  higher  object,  blessed  be  the  "living  God" 
who  has  given  it.  Resurrection  is  that  which  ever 
fills  the  vision  of  faith,  and,  in  the  power  thereof,  it 
can  rise  up  from  before  the  dead.  There  is  much 
conveyed  in  this  action  of  Abraham.  We  want  to 
understand  its  meaning  much  more  fully,  because 
we  are  much  too  prone  to  be  occupied  with  death 
and  its  consequences.  Death  is  the  boundary  of 
Satan's  power;  but  where  Satan  ends,  God  begins. 
Abraham  understood  this  when  he  rose  up  and  pur- 
chased the  cave  of  Machpelah  as  a  sleeping-place 
for  Sarah.  This  was  the  expression  of  Abraham's 
thought  in  reference  to  the  future.  He  knew  that  in 
the  ages  to  come  God's  promise  about  the  land  of 
Canaan  would  be  fulfilled,  and  he  was  "able  to  lay  the 
body  of  Sarah  in  the  tomb  "in  sure  and  certain 
hope  of  a  glorious  resurrection." 

The  sons  of  Heth  knew  nothing  about  this.  The 
thoughts  which  were  filling  the  patriarch's  soul  were 
entirely  foreign  to  the  uncircumcised  children  of 
Heth.  To  them  it  seemed  a  small  matter  where  he 
buried  his  dead,  but  it  was  by  no  means  a  small 
matter  to  him.  "I  am  a  stranger  and  a  sojourner 
with  you :  give  me  a  possession  of  a  burying-place 
with  you,  that  I  may  bury  my  dead  out  of  my  sight." 
It  might,  and  manifestly  did,  appear  strange  to  them 
to  make  so  much  ado  about  a  grave  ;  but,  "beloved, 
the  world  knoweth  us  not,  even  as  it  knew  Him  not." 
The  finest  traits  and  characteristics  of  faith  arc  those 
which  are  the  most  incomprehensible  to  the  natural 
man.  The  Canaanites  had  no  idea  of  the  expecta- 


CHAPTEK    XXIII.  241 

tions  which  were  giving  character  to  Abraham's  act- 
ings on  this  occasion.  They  had  no  idea  that  he 
was  looking  forward  to  the  possession  of  the  land, 
while  he  was  merely  looking  for  a  spot  in  which,  as 
a  dead  man,  he  might  wait  for  God's  time  and  God's 
manner,  viz.,  the  MORNING  OF  RESURRECTION.  He 
felt  lie  had  no  controversy  with  the  children  of  Heth, 
and  hence  he  was  quite  prepared  to  lay  his  head  in 
the  grave,  and  allow  God  to  act  for  him  and  with 
him  and  by  him. 

4 'These  all  died  in  [or  according  to]  faith  \_nara 
iti6riv~\,  not  having  received  the  promises,  but  hav- 
ing seen  them  afar  off,  and  were  persuaded  of  them, 
and  embraced  them,  and  confessed  that  they  were 
strangers  and  pilgrims  on  the  earth."  (Heb.  xi.  13.) 
This  is  a  truly-exquisite  feature  in  the  divine  life. 
Those  "witnesses"  of  whom  the  apostle  is  speaking 
in  Heb.  xi  not  merely  lived  by  faith,  but  even  when 
they  arrived  at  the  close  of  their  career,  they  proved 
that  the  promises  of  God  were  as  real  and  satisfying 
to  their  souls  as  when  they  first  started.  Now,  I  be- 
lieve this  purchase  of  a  burying-place  in  the  land  was 
an  exhibition  of  the  power  of  faith,  not  only  to  live, 
but  to  die.  Why  was  Abraham  so  particular  about 
this  purchase  ?  Why  was  he  so  anxious  to  make  good 
his  claim  to  the  field  and  cave  of  Ephron  on  right- 
eous principles  ?  Why  so  determined  to  weigh  out 
the  full  price  "current  with  the  merchant"  ?  FAITH 
is  the  answer.  He  did  it  all  by  faith.  He  knew  the 
land  was  his  in  prospect,  and  that  in  resurrection- 
glory  his  seed  should  yet  possess  it,  and  until  then 


242  GENESIS. 

he  would  be  no  debtor  to  those  who  were  yet  to  be 
dispossessed. 

Thus  we  may  view  this  beautiful  chapter  jn  a  two- 
fold light ; — first,  as  setting  before  us  a  plain,  prac- 
tical principle,  as  to  our  dealings  with  the  men  of 
this  world  ;  and  secondly,  as  presenting  the  blessed 
hope  which  should  ever  animate  the  man  of  faith. 
Putting  both  these  points  together,  we  have  an  ex- 
ample of  what  the  child  of  God  should  ever  be.  The 
hope  set  before  us  in  the  gospel  is  a  glorious  immor- 
tality ;  and  this,  while  it  lifts  the  heart  above  every 
influence  of  nature  and  the  world,  furnishes  a  high 
and  holy  principle  with  which  to  govern  all  our  inter- 
course with  those  who  are  without.  "We  know  that 
when  He  shall  appear,  we  shall  be  like  Him,  for  we 
shall  see  Him  as  He  is."  This  is  our  hope.  What 
is  the  moral  effect  of  this  ?  "Every  man  that  hath 
this  hope  in  Him  purifieth  himself,  even  as  He  is 
pure."  (1  John  iii.  2,  3.)  If  I  am  to  be  like  Christ 
by  and  by,  I  shall  seek  to  be  as  like  Him  now  as  I 
can ;  hence,  the  Christian  should  ever  seek  to  walk 
in  purity,  integrity  and  moral  grace,  in  the  view  of 
all  around. 

Thus  it  was  with  Abraham,  in  reference  to  the 
sons  of  Heth.  His  whole  deportment  and  conduct, 
as  set  forth  in  our  chapter,  would  seem  to  have  been 
marked  with  very  pure  elevation  and  disinterested- 
ness. He  was  "a  mighty  prince  among  them,"  and 
they  would  fain  have  done  him  a  favor ;  but  Abra- 
ham had  learnt  to  take  his  favors  only  from  the  God 
of  resurrection,  and  while  he  would  pay  them  for 


CHAPTER    XXIII.  243 

Machpelah,  he  would  look  to  Him  for  Canaan.  The 
sons  of  Heth  knew  well  the  value  of  "current  money 
with  the  merchant,"  and  Abraham  knew  the  value 
of  the  cave  of  Machpelah.  It  was  worth  much  more 
to  him  than  it  was  to  them.  "The  land  was  worth 
[to  them,]  four  hundred  shekels  of  silver,"  but  to 
him  it  was  priceless,  as  the  earnest  of  an  everlasting 
inheritance,  which,  because  it  was  an  everlasting  in- 
heritance, could  only  be  possessed  in  the  power  of 
resurrection.  Faith  conducts  the  soul  onward  into 
God's  future  ;  it  looks  at  things  as  He  looks  at  them, 
and  estimates  them  according  to  the  judgment  of 
the  sanctuary.  Therefore,  in  the  intelligence  of 
faith,  Abraham  stood  up  from  before  his  dead,  and 
purchased  a  burying-place,  which  significantly  set 
forth  his  hope  of  resurrection,  and  an  inheritance 
founded  thereon. 


CHAPTER  XXIV, 

THE  connection  of  this  chapter  with  the  two  which 
precede  it  is  worthy  of  notice.  In  chapter  xxii, 
the  son  is  offered  up  ;  in  chapter  xxiii,  Sarah  is  laid 
aside  ;  and  in  chapter  xxiv,  the  servant  is  sent  forth 
to  procure  a  bride  for  him  who  had  been,  as  it  were, 
received  from  the  dead  in  a  figure.  This  connection, 
in  a  very  striking  manner,  coincides  with  the  order 
of  events  connected  with  the  calling  out  of  the 
Church.  Whether  this  coincidence  is  to'be  regarded 
as  of  divine  origin,  will,  it  may  be,  raise  a  question 


244  GENESIS. 

in  the  minds  of  some ;  but  it  must  at  least  be  re- 
garded as  not  a  little  remarkable. 

When  we  turn  to  the  New  Testament,  the  grand 
events  which  meet  our  view  are,  first,  the  rejection 
and  death  of  Christ ;  secondly,  the  setting  aside  of 
Israel  after  the  flesh ;  and,  lastry,  the  calling  out  of 
the  Church  to  occupy  the  high  position  of  the  bride 
of  the  Lamb. 

Now  all  this  exactly  corresponds  with  the  contents 
of  this  and  the  two  preceding  chapters.  The  death 
of  Christ  needed  to  be  an  accomplished  fact  ere  the 
Church,  properly  so  called,  could  be  called  out. 
' '  The  middle  wall  of  partition ' '  needed  to  be  broken 
down  ere  the  "one  new  man"  could  be  developed. 

It  is  well  to  understand  this  in  order  that  we  may 
know  the  place  which  the  Church  occupies  in  the 
ways  of  God.  So  long  as  the  Jewish  economy  sub- 
sisted, there  was  the  most  strict  separation  main- 
tained between  Jew  and  Gentile  ;  and  hence  the  idea 
of  both  being  united  in  one  new  man  was  far  re- 
moved from  the  mind  of  a  Jew.  He  was  led  to  view 
himself  in  a  position  of  entire  superiority  to  that  of 
a  Gentile,  and  to  view  the  latter  as  utterly  unclean, 
to  whom  it  was  unlawful  to  come  in.  (Acts  x.  28.) 

If  Israel  had  walked  with  God  according  to  the 
truth  of  the  relationship  into  which  He  had  gra- 
ciously brought  them,  they  would  have  continued  in 
their  peculiar  place  of  separation  and  superiority ; 
but  this  they  did  not  do ;  and  therefore,  when  they 
had  filled  up  the  measure  of  their  iniquity,  by  cruci- 
fying the  Lord  of  life  and  glory,  and  rejecting  the 


CHAPTER   XXIV.  245 

testimony  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  we  find  St.  Paul  is 
raised  up  to  be  the  minister  of  a  new  thing,  which 
was  held  back  in  the  counsels  of  God,  while  the  tes- 
timony to  Israel  was  going  on.  "For  this  cause  I, 
Paul,  the  prisoner  of  Jesus  Christ  for  you  Gentiles, 
if  ye  have  heard  of  the  dispensation  of  the  grac*c  of 
God,  which  is  given  me  to  you-ward  ;  how  that  by 
revelation  He  made  known  unto  me  the  mystery  .  . 
.  .  .  which  in  other  ages  was  not  made  known  unto 
the  sons  of  men,  as  it  is  now  revealed  unto  His  holy 
apostles  and  prophets  [i.e. ,  New-Testament  prophets, 
— roz?  dyioiZ  rtTfotfro/loz?  avrov  nai  Ttpo(prfTai$,~\  by 
the  Spirit ;  that  the  Gentiles  should  be  fellow-heirs, 
and  of  the  same  body,  and  partakers  of  His  promise 
in  Christ  by  the  gospel."  (Eph.  iii.  1-6.)  This  is 
conclusive.  The  mystery  of  the  Church,  composed 
of  Jew  and  Gentile,  baptized  by  one  Spirit  into  one 
body,,  united  to  the  glorious  Head  in  the  heavens, 
had  never  been  revealed  until  Paul's  day.  Of  this 
mystery  the  apostle  goes  on  to  say,  "/was  made  a 
minister  according  to  the  gift  of  the  grace  of  God 
given  unto  me  by  the  effectual  working  of  His  pow- 
er." (Ver.  7.)  The  apostles  and  prophets  of  the 
New  Testament  formed,  as  it  were,  the  first  layer 
of  this  glorious  building.  (See  Eph.  ii.  20.)  This 
being  so,  it  follows,  as  a  consequence,  that  the 
building  could  not  have  been  begun  before.  If  the 
building  had  been  going  on  from  the  days  of  Abel 
downwards,  the  apostle  would  then  have  said,  The 
foundation  of  the  Old-Testament  saints.  But  he 
has  not  said  so,  and  therefore  we  conclude  that 


246  GENESIS. 

whatever  be  the  position  assigned  to  the  Old-Testa- 
ment saints,  they  cannot  possibly  belong  to  a  body 
which  had  no  existence,  save  in  the  purpose  of  God, 
until  the  death  and  resurrection  of  Christ,  and  the 
consequent  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  Saved  they 
were,  blessed  be  God, — saved  by  the  blood  of  Christ, 
and  destined  to  enjoy  heavenly  glory  with  the  Church ; 
but  they  could  not  have  formed  a  part  of  that  which 
did  not  exist  for  hundreds  of  years  after  their  time. 

It  were  easy  to  enter  upon  a  more  elaborate  dem- 
onstration of  this  most  important  truth  were  this  the 
place  for  so  doing ;  but  I  shall  now  go  on  with  our. 
chapter,  having  merely  touched  upon  a  question  of 
commanding  interest,  because  of  its  being  suggested 
by  the  position  of  the  twenty-fourth  of  Genesis. 

There  may  be  a  question  in  some  minds  as  to 
whether  we  are  to  view  this  deeply-interesting  por- 
tion of  Scripture  as  a  type  of  the  calling  out  of  the 
Church  by  the  Holy  Ghost.  For  myself,  I  feel  hap- 
pier in  merely  handling  it  as  an  illustration  of  that 
glorious  work.  We  cannot  suppose  that  the  Spirit 
of  God  would  occupy  an  unusually  long  chapter  with 
the  mere  detail  of  a  family  compact,  were  that  com- 
pact not  typical  or  illustrative  of  some  great  truth. 
41  Whatsoever  things  were  written  aforetime;  were 
written  for  our  learning."  This  is  emphatic.  What, 
therefore,  are  we  to  learn  from  the  chapter  before 
us  ?  I  believe  it  furnishes  us  with  a  beautiful  illus- 
tration or  foreshadowing  of  the  great  mystery  of 
the  Church.  It  is  important  to  see  that  while  there 
is  no  direct  revelation  of  this  mystery  in  the  Old 


CHAPTER    XXIV.  247 

Testament,  there  are,  nevertheless,  scenes  and  cir- 
cumstances which,  in  a  very  remarkable  manner, 
shadow  it  forth ;  as,  for  example,  the  chapter  before 
us.  As  has  been  remarked,  the  son  being,  in  a 
figure,  offered  up  and  received  again  from  the  dead, 
— the  original  parent-stem,  as  it  were,  being  laid 
aside, — the  messenger  is  sent  forth  by  the  father  to 
procure  a  bride  for  the  son. 

Now,  in  order  to  the  clear  and  full  understanding 
of  the  contents  of  the  entire  chapter,  we  may  con- 
sider the  following  points;  viz.,  first,  the  oath; 
second,  the  testimony;  third,  the  result.  It  is  beau- 
tiful to  observe  that  the  call  and  exaltation  of  Re- 
bekah  were  founded  upon  the  oath  between  Abraham 
and  his  servant.  She  knew  nothing  of  this,  though 
she  was,  in  the  purpose  of  God,  so  entirely  the  sub- 
ject of  it  all.  So  is  it  exactly  with  the  Church  of 
God  as  a  whole  and  each  constituent  part. — "In 
Thy  book  were  all  my  members  written,  which  in 
continuance  were  fashioned,  when  as  yet  there  were 
none  of  them"  (Ps.  cxxxix.  16.). — "Blessed  be  the 
God  and  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who  hath 
blessed  us  with  all  spiritual  blessings  in  the  heaven- 
lies  in  Christ;  according  as  He  hath  chosen  us  in 
Him  before  the  foundation  of  the  world,  that  we 
should  be  holy  and  without  blame  before  Him  in 
love"  (Eph.  i.  3,  4.). — "For  whom  He  did  fore- 
know, He  also  did  predestinate  to  be  conformed  to 
the  image  of  His  Son,  that  He  might  be  the  first- 
born among  many  brethren.  Moreover,  whom  He 
did  predestinate,  them  He  also  called;  and  whom 
17 


248  GENESIS. 

He  called,  them  He  also  justified ;  and  whom  He 
justified,  them  He  also  glorified  "(Rom.  viii.  29,30.). 
These  scriptures  are  all  in  beautiful  harmony  with 
the  point  immediately  before  us.  The  call,  the  just- 
ification, and  the  glory  of  the  Church,  are  all  founded 
on  the  eternal  purpose  of  God — His  word  and  oath, 
ratified  by  the  death,  resurrection  and  exaltation  of 
the  Son.  Far  back,  beyond  the  bounds  of  time,  in 
the  deep  recesses  of  God's  eternal  mind,  lay  this 
wondrous  purpose  respecting  the  Church,  which 
cannot  by  any  means  be  separated  from  the  divine 
thought  respecting  the  glory  of  the  Son.  The  oath 
between  Abraham  and  the  servant  had  for  its  object 
the  provision  of  a  partner  for  the  son.  It  was  the 
father's  desire  with  respect  to  the  son  that  led  to  all 
Rebekah's  after-dignity.  It  is  happy  to  see  this, — 
happy  to  see  how  the  Church's  security  and  blessing 
stand  inseparably  connected  with  Christ  and  His 
glory.  "For  the  man  is  not  of  the  woman,  but  the 
woman  of  the  man.  Neither  was  the  man  created 
for  the  woman,  but  the  woman  for  the  man."  (1  Cor. 
xi.  8,  9.)  So  it  is  in  the  beautiful  parable  of  the 
marriage-supper — "The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  like 
unto  a  certain  king  which  made  a  marriage  for  his 
son."  (Matt.  xxii.  2.)  THE  SON  is  the  grand  object 
of  all  the  thoughts  and  counsels  of  God  ;  and  if  any 
are  brought  into  blessing  or  glory  or  dignity,  it  can 
only  be  in  connection  with  Him.  All  title  to  these 
things,  and  even  to  life  itself,  was  forfeited  by  sin ; 
but  Christ  met  all  the  penalty  due  to  sin ;  He  made 
Himself  responsible  for  everything  on  behalf  of  His 


I 


CHAPTER 

body  the  Church  ;  He  was  nailed 
representative ;  Hb  bore  her  sins 
on  the  tree,  and  went  down  into  the  grave" 
full  weight  of  them.  Hence,  nothing  can  be  more 
complete  than  the  Church's  deliverance  from  all  that 
was  against  her.  She  is  quickened  out  of  the  grave 
of  Christ,  where  all  her  trespasses  were  laid.  The 
life  which  she  has  is  a  life  taken  up  at  the  other  side 
of  death,  after  every  possible  demand  had  been  met. 
Hence,  this  life  is  connected  with,  and  founded  upon, 
divine  righteousness,  inasmuch  as  Christ's  title  to 
life  is  founded  upon  His  having  entirely  exhausted 
the  power  of  death ;  and  He  is  the  Church's  life. 
Thus  the  Church  enjoys  divine  life ;  she  stands  in 
divine  righteousness ;  and  the  hope  that  animates 
her  is  the  hope  of  righteousness.  (See,  amongst 
many  other  scriptures,  John  iii.  16,  36;  v.  39,  40; 
vi.  27,  40,  47,  68 ;  xi.  25 ;  xvii.  2  ;  Rom.  v.  21 ;  vi. 
23;  1  Tim.  i.  16;  1  John  ii.  25  ;  v.  20 ;  Jude  21 ; 
Eph.  ii.  1-6,  14,  15  ;  Col.  i.  12-22  ;  ii.  10-15  ;  Rom. 
i.  17;  iii.  21-26;  iv.  5,  23-25;  2  Cor.  v.  21;  Gal. 
v.  5.) 

These  scriptures  most  fully  establish  the  three 
points,  viz.,  the  life,  the. righteousness,  and  the  hope 
of  the  Church,  all  of  which  flow  from  her  being  one 
with  Him  who  was  raised  from  the  dead.  Now,  no- 
thing can  be  so  calculated  to  assure  the  heart  as  the 
conviction  that  the  Church's  existence  is  essential  to 
the  glory  of  Christ. — "The  woman  is  the  glory  of 
the  man."  (1  Cor.  xi.  7.)  And  again,  the  Church  is 
called  "the  fullness  of  Him  that  filleth  all  in  all." 


250  GENESIS. 

(Epli.  i.  23.)  This  last  is  a  remarkable  expression. 
The  word  translated  "fullness"  means  the  comple- 
ment— that  which,  being  added  to  something  else, 
makes  up  a  whole.  Thus  it  is  that  Christ  the  Head, 
and  the  Church  the  body,  make  up  the  "one  new 
man."  (Eph.  ii.  15.)  Looking  at  the  matter  in  this 
point  of  view,  it  is  no  marvel  that  the  Church  should 
have  been  the  object  of  God's  eternal  counsels. 
When  we  view  her  as  the  body,  the  bride,  the  com- 
panion, the  counterpart,  of  His  only  begotten  Son, 
we  feel  that  there  was,  through  grace,  wondrous 
reason  for  her  being  so  thought  of  before  the  foun- 
dation of  the  world.  Rebekah  was  necessary  to 
Isaac,  and  therefore  she  was  the  subject  of  secret 
counsel  while  yet  in  profound  ignorance  about  her 
high  destiny.  All  Abraham's  thought  was  about 
Isaac.  "I  will  make  thee  swear  by  the  Lord,  the 
God  of  heaven,  and  the  God  of  the  earth,  that  thou 
shalt  not  take  a  wife  unto  my  son  of  the  daughters 
of  the  Canaanites,  among  whom  I  dwell."  Here  we 
see  that  the  all-important  point  was,  "a  wife  unto 
my  son."  "It  is  not  good  that  the  man  should  be 
alone."  This  opens  up  a  very  deep  and  blessed 
view  of  the  Church.  In  the  .counsels  of  God  she  is 
necessary  to  Christ ;  and,  in  the  accomplished  work 
of  Christ,  divine  provision  has  been  made  for  her 
being  called  into  existence. 

While  occupied  with  such  a  character  of  truth  as 
this,  it  is  no  longer  a  question  as  to  whether  God  can 
save  poor  sinners;  He  actually  wants  to  "make  a 
marriage  for  His  Son,"  and  the  Church  is  the 


CHAPTER    XXIV.  251 

destined  bride, — she  is  the  object  of  the  Father's 
purpose,  the  object  of  the  Son's  love,  and  of  the 
testimony  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  She  is  to  be  the 
sharer  of  all  the  Son's  dignity  and  glory,  as  she  is 
the  sharer  of  all  that  love  of  which  He  has  been  the 
everlasting  object.  Hear  His  own  words, — "And 
the  glory  which  Thou  gavest  Me  I  have  given  them ; 
that  they  may  be  one,  even  as  We  are  one :  I  in 
them,  and  Thou  in  Me,  that  they  may  be  made  per- 
fect in  one  ;  and  that  the  world  may  know  that  Thou 
hast  sent  Me,  and  hast  loved  them  as  Thou  hast 
loved  Me."  (John  xvii.  22,  23.)  This  settles  the 
whole  question.  The  words  just  quote'd  give  us  the 
thoughts  of  Christ's  heart  in  reference  to  the  Church. 
She  is  to  be  as  He  is,  and  not  only  so,  but  she  is  so 
even  now,  as  St.  John  tells  us,  "Herein  is  love  per- 
fected with  us,  that  we  may  have  boldness  in  the 
day  of  judgment;  because  as  He  is,  so  are  we  in 
this  world."  (1  John  iv.  17.)  This  gives  full  confi- 
dence to  the  soul.  "We  are  in  Him  that  is  true,  in 
His  Son  Jesus  Christ.  This  is  the  true  God  and 
eternal  life."  (1  John  v.  20.)  There  is  here  no 
grouud  for  uncertainty.  Everything  is  secured  for 
the  bride  in  the  bridegroom.  All  that  belonged  to 
Isaac  became  Rebekah's  because  Isaac  was  hers ; 
and  so  all  that  belongs  to  Christ  is  made  available  to 
the  Church.  "All  things  are  yours  ;  whether  Paul, 
or  Apollos,  or  Cephas,  or  the  world,  or  life,  or  death, 
or  things  present,  or  things  to  come — all  are  yours, 
and  ye  are  Christ's,  and  Christ  is  God's."  (1  Cor. 
iii.  21-23.)  Christ  is  "head  over  all  things  to  the 


252  GENESIS. 

Church."  (Eph.  i.  22.)  It  will  be  His  joy  through- 
out eternity  to  exhibit  the  Church  in  all  the  glory 
and  beauty  with  which  lie  has  endowed  her,  for  her 
glory  and  beauty  will  be  but  the  reflection  of  His. 
Angels  and  principalities  shall  behold  in  the  Church 
the  marvelous  display  of  the  wisdom,  power,  and 
grace  of  God  in  Christ. 

But  we  shall  now  look  at  the  second  point  for  con- 
sideration, viz.,  the  testimony.  Abraham's  servant 
carried  with  him  a  very  distinct  testimony. — "And 
he  said,  'I  am  Abraham's  servant.  And  the  Lord 
hath  blessed  my  master  greatly,  and  he  is  become 
great;  and  He  hath  given  him  flocks,  and  herds, 
and  silver,  and  gold,  and  men-servants,  and  maid- 
servants, and  camels,  and  asses.  And  Sarah,  my 
master's  wife,  bare  a  son  to  my  master  when  she 
was  old ;  and  unto  him  hath  he  given  all  that  he 
hath.'"  (Ver.  34-36.)  He  reveals  the  father  and 
the  son.  Such  was  his  testimony.  He  speaks  of 
the  vast  resources  of  the  father,  and  of  the  son's 
being  endowed  with  all  these  in  virtue  of  his  being 
"the  only  begotten,"  and  the  object  of  the  father's 
love.  With  this  testimony  he  seeks  to  obtain  a 
bride  for  the  son. 

All  this,  I  need  hardly  remark,  is  strikingly  illus- 
trative of  the  testimony  with  which  the  Holy  Ghost 
was  sent  from  heaven  upon  the  day  of  Pentecost. — 
"When  the  Comforter  is  come,  whom  I  will  send 
unto  you  from  the  Father,  even  the  Spirit  of  truth, 
which  proceedeth  from  the  Father,  Pie  shall  testify » 
of  Me."  (John  xv.  26.)  Again,  "Howbcit  when 


CHAPTER    XXIV.  253 

He,  the  Spirit  of  truth,  is  come,  He  will  guide  you 
into  all  truth;  for  He  shall  not  speak  of  Himself ; 
but  whatsoever  He  shall  hear,  that  shall  He  speak ; 
and  He  will  show  you  things  to  come.  He  shall 
glorify  Me ;  for  He  shall  receive  of  Mine  and  show 
it  unto  you.  All  things  that  the  Father  hath  are 
Mine;  therefore  said  I,  that  He  shall  take  of  Mine 
and  shall  show  it  unto  you."  (John  xvi.  13-15.) 
The  coincidence  of  these  words  with  the  testimony 
of  Abraham's  servant  is  instructive  and  interesting. 
It  was  by  telling  of  Isaac  that  he  sought  to  attract 
the  heart  of  Rebekah ;  and  it  is,  as  we  know,  by 
telling  of  Jesus,  that  the  Holy  Ghost  seeks  to  draw 
poor  sinners  away  from  a  world  of  sin  and  folly,  into 
the  blessed  and  holy  unity  of  the  body  of  Christ. 
"He  shall  take  of  Mine  and  show  it  unto  you." 
The  Spirit  of  God  will  never  lead  any  one  to  look  at 
Himself  or  His  wrork,  but  only  and  always  at  Christ. 
Hence,  the  more  really  spiritual  any  one  is,  the  more 
entirely  will  he  be  occupied  with  Christ. 

Some  there  are  who  regard  it  as  a  great  mark  of 
spirituality  to  be  ever  looking  in  at  their  own  hearts, 
and  dwelling  upon  what  they  find  there,  even  though 
that  be  the  work  of  the  Spirit.  This  is  a  great  mis- 
take. So  far  from  its  being  a  proof  of  spirituality, 
it  is  a  proof  of  the  very  reverse  ;  for  it  is  expressly 
declared  of  the  Holy  Ghost  that  "He  shall  not  speak 
of  Himself,"  but  that,  on  the  contrary,  "He  shall 
take  of  Mine  and  show  it  unto  you."  Therefore, 
whenever  one  is  looking  inward,  and  building  on  the 
evidences  of  the  Spirit's  work  there,  he  may  be  as- 


254  GENESIS. 

sured  he  is  not  led  by  the  Spirit  of  God  in  so  doing. 
It  is  by  holding  up  Christ  that  the  Spirit  draws  souls 
to  God.  This  is  very  important.  The  knowledge 
of  Christ  is  life  eternal ;  and  it  is  the  Father's  reve- 
lation of  Christ,  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  that  constitutes 
the  basis  of  the  Church.  When  Peter  confessed 
Christ  to  be  the  Son  of  the  living  God,  Christ's  an- 
swer was,  "Blessed  art  thou,  Simon  Bar-jonah;  for 
flesh  and  blood  hath  not  revealed  it  unto  thee,  but 
My  Father  which  is  in  heaven.  And  I  say  unto  thee, 
that  thou  art  Peter ;  and  upon  this  rock  /  will  build 
My  Church  ;  and  the  gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail 
against  it."  (Matt.  xvi.  17,  18.)  What  rock? 
Peter  ?  God  forbid.  "This  rock"[rai;r?7  TIJ  Tterpa] 
simply  means  the  Father's  revelation  of  Christ,  as 
the  Son  of  the  living  God,  which  is  the  only  means 
by  which  any  one  is  introduced  into  the  assembly  of 
Christ.  Now  this  opens  to  us  very  much  the  true 
character  of  the  gospel.  It  is,  pre-eminently  and 
emphatically,  a  revelation, — a  revelation  not  merely 
of  a  doctrine,  but  of  a  Person — the  Person  of  the 
Son.  This  revelation  being  received  by  faith,  draws 
the  heart  to  Christ,  and  becomes  the  spring  of  life 
and  power — the  ground  of  membership — the  power 
of  fellowship.  "When  it  pleased  God  ....  to 
reveal  His  Son  in  me,"  etc.  Here  we  have  the  true 
principle  of  "the  rock,"  viz.,  God  revealing  His  Son. 
It  is  thus  the  superstructure  is  reared  up ;  and  on 
this  solid  foundation  it  reposes,  according  to  God's 
eternal  purpose. 

It  is  therefore  peculiarly  instructive  to  find  in  this 


CHAPTER    XXIV.  255 

twenty-fourth  of  Genesis  such  a  marked  and  beauti- 
ful illustration  of  the  mission  and  special  testimony 
of  the  Holy  Ghost.  Abraham's  servant,  in  seeking 
to  procure  a  bride  for  Isaac,  sets  forth  all  the  dignity 
and  wealth  with  which  he  had  been  endowed  by  the 
father ;  the  love  of  which  he  was  the  object ;  and, 
in  short,  all  that  was  calculated  to  affect  the  heart, 
and  draw  it  off  from  present  things.  He  showed 
Rebekah  an  object  in  the  distance,  and  set  before 
her  the  blessedness  and  reality  of  being  made  one 
with  that  beloved  and  highly-favored  object.  All 
that  belonged  to  Isaac  would  belong  to  Rebekah 
too  when  she  became  part  of  him.  Such  was  his 
testimony.  Such,  also,  is  the  testimon}r  of  the  Holy 
Ghost.  He  speaks  of  Christ,  the  glory  of  Christ,  the 
beauty  of  Christ,  the  fullness  of  Christ,  the  grace  of 
Christ,  "the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ,"  the  dig- 
nity of  His  Person,  and  the  perfectness  of  His  work. 
Moreover,  He  sets  forth  the  amazing  blessedness 
of  being  one  with  such  a  Christ, — "members  of  His 
body,  of  His  flesh,  and  of  His  bones."  Such  is  the 
Spirit's  testimony  always ;  and  herein  we  have  an 
excellent  touchstone  by  which  to  try  all  sorts  of 
teaching  and  preaching.  The  most  spiritual  teach- 
ing will  ever  be  characterized  by  a  full  and  constant 
presentation  of  Christ, — He  will  ever  form  the  bur- 
den of  such  teaching.  The  Spirit  cannot  dwell  on 
aught  but  Jesus.  Of  Him  He  delights  to  speak, — 
He  delights  in  setting  forth  His  attractions  and  ex- 
cellencies. Hence,  when  a  man  is  ministering  by 
the  power  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  there  will  always  be 


256  GENESIS. 

more  of  Christ  than  anything  else  in  his  ministry. 
There  will  be  little  room  in  such  ministry  for  human 
logic  and  reasoning.  Such  things  may  do  very  well 
where  a  man  desires  to*set  forth  himself;  but  the 
Spirit's  sole  object — be  it  well  remembered  by  all 
who  minister — will  ever  be  to  set  forth  Christ. 

Let  us  now  look,  in  the  last  place,  at  the  result  of 
all  this.  Truth,  and  the  practical  application  of 
truth,  are  two  very  different  things.  It  is  one  thing 
to  speak  of  the  peculiar  glories  of  the  Church,  and 
quite  another  thing  to  be  practically  influenced  by 
those  glories.  In  Rebekah's  case,  the  effect  was 
most  marked  and  decisive.  The  testimony  of  Abra- 
ham's servant  sank  down  into  her  ears  and  into  her 
heart,  and  entirely  detached  her  heart's  affections 
from  the  scene  of  things  around  her.  She  was  ready 
to  leave  all  and  follow  after,  in  order  that  she  might 
apprehend  that  for  which  she  had  been  apprehended. 
It  was  morally  impossible  that  she  could  believe  her- 
self to  be  the  subject  of  such  high  destinies  and  yet 
continue  amid  the  circumstances  of  nature.  If  the 
report  concerning  the  future  were  true,  attachment 
to  the  present  was  the  worst  of  folly.  If  the  hope 
of  being  Isaac's  bride,  joint-heir  with  him  of  all  his 
dignity  and  glory — if  this  were  a  reality,  then  to 
continue  to  tend  Laban's  sheep  would  be  practically 
to  despise  all  that  God  had,  in  grace,  set  before  her. 

But  no,  the  prospect  was  far  too  bright  to  be  thus 
lightly  given  up.  True,  she  had  not  yet  seen  Isaac, 
nor  yet  the  inheritance,  but  she  had  believed  the  re- 
port— the  testimony  of  7t*'m,  and  had  received,  as  it 


CHAPTER    XXIV.  257 

were,  the  earnest  of  *Y,  and  these  were  enough  for 
her  heart ;  and  hence  she  unhesitatingly  arises  and 
expresses  her  readiness  to  depart  in  the  memorable 
words,  " I  ivill  go."  She  was  fully  prepared  to  enter 
upon  an  unknown  path  in  companionship  with  one 
who  had  told  her  of  an  object  far  away,  and  of  a 
glory  connected  with  him,  to  which  she  was  about 
to  be  raised.  "I  will  go,"  said  she  ;  and,  " forget- 
ting the  things  which  were  behind,  and  reaching 
forth  toward  the  things  which  were  before,  she 
pressed  toward  the  mark  for  the  prize  of  her  high 
calling."  Most  touching  and  beautiful  illustration 
this  of  the  Church,  under  the  conduct  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  going  onward  to  meet  her  heavenly  Bride- 
groom. This  is  what  the  Church  should  be ;  but, 
alas!  there  is  sad  failure  here.  There  is  little  of 
that  holy  alacrity  in  laying  aside  every  weight  and 
every  entanglement,  in  the  power  of  communion 
with  the  Holy  Guide  and  Companion  of  our  way, 
whose  office  and  delight  it  is  to  take  of  the  things  of 
Jesus  and  show  them  unto  us;  just  as  Abraham's 
servant  took  of  the  things  of  Isaac  and  showed  them 
to  Rebekah :  and  no  doubt,  too,  he  found  his  joy  in 
pouring  fresh  testimonies  concerning  the  son  into 
her  ear,  as  they  moved  onward  toward  the  consum- 
mation of  all  her  joy  and  glory.  Thus  it  is,  at  least 
witli  our  heavenly  Guide  and  Companion.  Pie  de- 
lights to  tell  of  Jesus,  "He  shall  take  of  Mine  and 
show  it  unto  you  ;  "  and  again,  "He  shall  show  you 
things  to  come."  Now  this  is  what  we  really  want  — 
this  ministry  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  unfolding  Christ 


258  GENESIS. 

to  our  souls,  producing  earnest  longing  to  see  Him 
as  He  is,  and  be  made  like  Him  forever.  Naught 
but  this  will  ever  detach  our  hearts  from  earth  and 
nature.  What,  save  the  hope  of  being  associated 
with  Isaac,  would  ever  have  led  Rebekah  to  say,  "I 
will  go,"  when  her  "brother  and  her  mother  said, 
'  Let  the  damsel  abide  with  us  a  few  days,  at  least 
ten.'  "  And  so  with  us:  nothing  but  the  hope  of 
seeing  Jesus  as  He  is,  and  being  like  Him,  will  ever 
enable  or  lead  us  to  purify  ourselves,  even  as  He  is 
pure. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

IN  the  opening  of  this  chapter,  Abraham's  second 
marriage  is  set  before  us,  an  event  not  without 
its  interest  to  the  spiritual  mind,  when  viewed  in 
connection  with  what  we  have  been  considering  in 
the  preceding  chapter.  With  the  light  furnished  by 
the  prophetic  scriptures  of  the  New  Testament,  we 
understand,  that  after  the  completion  and  taking  up 
of  the  elect  bride  of  Christ,  the  seed  of  Abraham 
will  again  come  into  notice.  Thus,  after  the  mar- 
riage of  Isaac,  the  Holy  Ghost  takes  up  the  history 
of  Abraham's  seed  by  a  new  marriage,  together  with 
other  points  in  his  history,  and  that  of  his  seed, 
according  to  the  flesh.  I  do  not  press  any  special 
interpretation  of  all  this  ;  I  merely  say  that  it  is  not 
without  its  interest. 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  remark  of  some 


CHAPTER    XXV.  259 

one  on  the  book  of  Genesis,  namely,  that  it  is  "full 
of  the  seeds  of  things;"  and  as  we  pass  along  its 
comprehensive  pages,  we  shall  find  them  teeming 
with  all  the  fundamental  principles  of  truth,  which 
are  more  elaborately  wrought  out  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment. True,  in  Genesis  these  principles  arc  set 
forth  illustratively,  and  in  the  New  Testament  didac- 
tically ;  still,  the  illustration  is  deeply  interesting, 
and  eminently  calculated  to  bring  home  the  truth 
with  power  to  the  soul. 

At  the  close  of  this  chapter,  we  are  presented  with 
some  principles  of  a  very  solemn  and  practical  na- 
ture. Jacob's  character  and  actings  will  hereafter, 
if  the  Lord  will,  come  more  fully  before  us ;  but  I 
would  just  notice,  ere  passing  on,  the  conduct  of 
Esau  in  reference  to  the  birthright,  and  all  which  it 
involved.  The  natural  heart  places  no  value  on  the 
things  of  God.  To  it,  God's  promise  is  a  vague, 
valueless,  powerless  thing,  simply  because  God  is 
not  known.  Hence  it  is  that  present  things  carry 
such  weight  and  influence  in  man's  estimation. 
Anything  that  man  can  see,  he  values,  because  he  is 
governed  by  sight  and  not  by  faith.  To  him,  the 
present  is  everything ;  the  future  is  a  mere  uninflu- 
cntial  thing — a  matter  of  the  merest  uncertainty. 
Thus  it  was  with  Esau.  Hear  his  fallacious  reason- 
ing,— "Behold,  I  am  at  the  point  to  die  ;  and  what 
profit  shall  this  birthright  do  to  me  ?  What  strange 
reasoning  ! — The  present  is  slipping  from  beneath 
my  feet,  I  will  therefore  despise  and  entirely  let  go 
the  future  ! — Time  is  fading  from  my  view,  I  will 


200  GENESIS. 

therefore  abandon  all  interest  in  eternity  !  "Thus 
Esau  despised  his  birthright:  "  thus  Israel  despised 
the  pleasant  land  (Ps.  cvi.  24.)  ;  thus  the}7  despised 
Christ  (Zech.  xi.  13.):  thus  those  who  were  bidden 
to  the  marriage  despised  the  invitation  (Matt.  xxii. 
5.).  Man  has  no  heart  for  the  things  of  God.  The 
present  is  everything  to  him.  A  mess  of  pottage  is 
better  than  a  title  to  Canaan.  Hence,  the  very 
reason  why  Esau  made  light  of  the  birthright  was 
the  very  reason  why  he  ought  to  have  grasped  it 
with  the  greater  intensity.  The  more  clearly  I  see 
the  vanity  of  man's  present,  the  more  I  shall  cleave 
to  God's  future.  Thus  it  is  in  the  judgment  of  faith, 
"Seeing,  then,  that  all  these  things  shall  be  dissolved, 
what  manner  of  persons  ought  ye  to  be  in  all  holy 
conversation  and  godliness,  looking  for  and  hasting 
unto  the  coming  of  the  day  of  God,  wherein  the 
heavens  being  on  fire  shall  be  dissolved,  and  the  ele- 
ments shall  melt  with  fervent  heat  ?  Nevertheless 
we,  according  to  His  promise,  look  for  new  heavens 
and  a  new  earth,  wherein  dwellcth  righteousness." 
(2  Pet.  iii.  11-13.)  These  are  the  thoughts  of  God, 
and  therefore  the  thoughts  of  faith.  The  things  that 
are  seen  shall  be  dissolved.  What !  then,  are  we  to 
despise  the  unseen  ?  By  no  means.  The  present 
is  rapidly  passing  away.  What  is  our  resource  ? 
"Looking  for  and  hasting  unto  the  coming  of  the 
day  of  God."  This  is  the  judgment  of  the  renewed 
mind;  and  any  other  judgment  is  only  that  of'*  a 
profane  person,  as  Esau,  who  for  one  morsel  of  meat 
sold  his  birthright."  (Heb.  xii.  16.)  The  Lord  keep 


CHAPTER    XXVI.  261 

us  judging  of  things  as  He  judges.     This  can  only 
be  done  by  faith. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

rpHE  opening  verse  of  this  chapter  connects  itself 
JL  with  chapter  xii.  "There  was  a  famine  in  the 
land,  beside  the  first  famine  that  was  in  the  days  of 
Abraham."  The  trials  which  meet  God's  people  in 
their  course  are  very  much  alike,  and  they  ever  tend 
to  make  manifest  how  far  the  heart  has  found  its  all 
in  God.  It  is  a  difficult  matter — a  rare  attainment — 
so  to  walk  in  sweet  communion  with  God  as  to  be 
rendered  thereby  entirely  independent  of  things  and 
people  here.  The  Egypts  and  the  Gerars  which  lie 
on  our  right  hand  and  on  our  left  present  great 
temptations,  either  to  turn  aside  out  of  the  right 
way,  or  to  stop  short  of  our  true  position  as  servants 
of  the  true  and  living  God. 

"And  Isaac  went  unto  Abimelech,  king  of  the 
Philistines,  unto  Gerar."  There  is  a  manifest  dif- 
ference between  Egypt  and  Gerar.  Egypt  is  the 
expression  of  the  world  in  its  natural  resources  and 
its  independence  of  God.  "My  river  is  mine  own,"" 
is  the  language  of  an  Egyptian  who  knew  not  Jeho- 
vah, and  thought  not  of  looking  to  Him  for  aught. 
Egypt  was,  locally,  further  removed  from  Canaan 
than  Gerar ;  and,  morally,  it  expresses  a  condition 
of  soul  further  from  God.  Gerar  is  thus  referred  to 
in  chapter  x. — "And  the  border  of  the  Canaanites 


262  GENESIS. 

was  from  Sidon,  as  thou  comest  to  Gerar,  unto  Gaza ; 
as  thou  goest  unto  Sodom,  and  Gomorrah,  and  Ad- 
mah,  and  Zeboim,  even  unto  Lasha."  (Ver.  19.) 
We  are  informed  that  "from  Gerar  to  Jerusalem 
was  three  days'  journey."  It  was,  therefore,  as 
compared  with  Egypt,  an  advanced  position ;  but 
•still  it  lay  within  the  range  of  very  dangerous  influ- 
ences. Abraham  got  into  trouble  there,  and  so  does 
Isaac  in  this  chapter,  and  that,  too,  in  the  very  same 
way.  Abraham  denied  his  wife,  and  so  does  Isaac. 
This  is  peculiarly  solemn.  To  see  both  the  father 
and  the  son  fall  into  the  same  evil,  in  the  same  place, 
tells  us  plainly  that  the  influence  of  that  place  was 
not  good. 

Had  Isaac  not  gone  to  Abimelech,  king  of  Gerar, 
he  would  have  no  necessity  for  denying  his  wife ; 
but  the  slightest  divergence  from  the  true  line  of 
conduct  superinduces  spiritual  weakness.  It  was 
when  Peter  stood  and  warmed  himself  at  the  high- 
priest's  fire  that  he  denied  his  Master.  Now,  it  is 
manifest  that  Isaac  was  not  really  happy  in  Gerar. 
True,  the  Lord  says  unto  him,  "Sojourn  in  this 
land  ;  "  but  how  often  does  the  Lord  give  directions 
to  His  people  morally  suitable  to  the  condition  He 
knows  them  to  be  in,  and  calculated  also  to  arouse 
them  to  a  true  sense  of  that  condition  ?  He  directed 
Moses,  in  Numbers  xiii,  to  send  men  to  search  the 
land  of  Canaan ;  but  had  they  not  been  -in  a  low 
moral  condition,  such  a  step  would  not  have  been 
necessaiy.  We  know  well  that  faith  does  not  need 
"£o  spy  out""  when  God's  promise  lies  before  us. 


CHAPTER    XXVI.  2G3 

Again»  He  directed  Moses  to  choose  out  seventy 
elders  to  help  him  in  the  work ;  but  had  Moses  fully 
entered  into  the  dignity  and  blessedness  of  his  posi- 
tion, he  would  not  have  needed  such  a  direction. 
So,  in  reference  to  the  setting  up  of  a  king,  in 
1  Samuel  viii ; — they  ought  not  to  have  needed  a 
king.  Hence,  we  must  always  take  into  considera- 
tion the  condition  of  an  individual  or  a  people  to 
whom  a  direction  is  given  before  w?e  can  form  any 
correct  judgment  as  to  the  direction. 

But  again  it  may  be  said,  If  Isaac's  position  in 
Gerar  was  wrong,  how  do  we  read,  "Then  Isaac 
sowed  in  that  land,  and  received  the  same  year  a 
hundred  fold;  and  the  Lord  blessed  him"?  (Yer. 
12.)  I  reply,  we  can  never  judge  that  a  person's 
condition  is  right  because  of  prosperous  circum- 
stances. We  have  had  already  to  remark  that  there 
is  a  great  difference  between  the  Lord's  presence 
and  His  blessing.  Many  have  the  latter  without  the 
former ;  and,  moreover,  the  heart  is  prone  to  mis- 
take the  one  for  the  other — prone  to  put  the  blessing 
for  the  presence,  or  at  least  to  argue  that  the  one 
must  ever  accompany  the  other.  This  is  a  great 
mistake.  How  many  do  we  see  surrounded  by  God's 
blessings,  who  neither  have  nor  wish  for  God's  pres- 
ence ?  It  is  important  to  see  this.  A  man  may 
"wax  great,  and  go  forward,  and  grow  until  he  be- 
comes very  great,  and  have  possession  of  flocks,  and 
possession  of  herds,  and  great  store  of  servants," 
and  all  the  while  not  have  the  full  unhindered  joy  of 
the  Lord's  presence  with  him.  Flocks  and  herds 
18 


204  GENESIS. 

are  not  the  Lord.  They  are  things  on  account  of 
which  the  Philistines  might  envy  Isaac,  whereas 
they  never  would  have  envied  him  on  account  of  the 
Lord's  presence.  He  might  have  been  enjoying  the 
sweetest  and  richest  communion  with  God,  and  the 
Philistines  have  thought  nothing  whatever  about  it, 
simply  because  they  had  no  heart  to  understand  or 
appreciate  such  a  realit}7.  Flocks,  herds,  servants, 
and  wells  of  water  they  could  appreciate ;  but  the 
divine  presence  they  could  not  appreciate. 

However,  Isaac  at  length  makes  his  way  from 
amongst  the  Philistines,  and  gets  up  to  Beersheba. 
"And  the  Lord  appeared  unto  him  the  same  night, 
and  said,  'I  am  the  God  of  Abraham  thy  father; 
fear  not,  for  /  am  with  tliee,  and  will  bless  thee.'  " 
(Ver.  24.)  Mark,  it  was  not  the  Lord's  blessing 
merely,  but  the  Lord  Himself.  And  why  ?  Because 
Isaac  had  left  the  Philistines,  with  all  their  envy 
and  strife  and  contention,  behind,  and  gone  up  to 
Beersheba.  Here  the  Lord  could  show  Himself  to 
His  servant.  The  blessings  of  His  liberal  hand 
might  follow  him  during  his  sojourn  in  Gerar,  but. 
His  presence  could  not  there  be  enjoyed.  To  enjoy 
God's  presence,  we  must  be  where  He  is,  and  He 
certainly  is  not  to  be  found  amid  the  strife  and  con- 
tention of  an  ungodly  world  ;  and  hence,  the  sooner 
the  child  of  God  gets  away  from  all  such,  the  bettor. 
So  Isaac  found  it.  He  had  no  rest  in  his  own  spirit ; 
and  he  assuredly  did  not,  in  any  wise,  serve  the 
Philistines  by  his  sojourn  amongst  them.  It  is  a 
very  common  error  to  imagine  that  we  serve  the  men 


CHAPTER    XXVI.  265 

of  this  world  by  mixing  ourselves  up  with  them  in 
their  associations  and  ways.  The  true  way  to  serve 
them  is  to  stand  apart  from  them  in  the  power  of 
communion  with  God,  and  thus  show  them  the 
pattern  of  a  more  excellent  wa}r. 

Mark  the  progress  in  Isaac's  soul,  and  the  moral 
effect  of  his  course. — "He  went  up  from  thence," 
"the  Lord  appeared  unto  him,"  "he  builded  an 
altar,"  "he  called  on  the  name  of  the  Lord,"  "he 
pitched  his  tent,"  "his  servants  digged  a  well." 
Here  we  have  most  blessed  progress.  The  moment 
he  took  a  step  in  the  right  direction,  he  went  from 
strength  to  strength.  He  entered  into  the  joy  of 
God's  presence — tasted  the  sweets  of  true  worship, 
and  exhibited  the  character  of  a  stranger  and  pil- 
grim, and  found  peaceful  refreshment — an  undis- 
puted well,  which  the  Philistines  could  not  stop 
because  they  were  not  there. 

These  were  blessed  results  in  reference  to  Isaac 
himself;  and  now  observe  the  effect  produced  upon 
others. — "Then  Abimelech  went  to  him  from  Gerar, 
and  Ahuzzath,  one  of  his  friends,  and  Phicol,  the 
chief  captain  of  his  army.  And  Isaac  said  unto 
them,  "Wherefore  come  ye  to  me,  seeing  ye  hate 
me,  and  have  sent  me  away  from  you  ? '  And  they 
said,  'We  saw  certainly  that  the  Lord  was  with 
thee  ;  and  we  said,  Let  there  now  be  an  oath  be- 
twixt us,'  "  etc.  The  true  way  to  act  on  the  hearts 
and  consciences  of  the  men  of  the  world  is  to  stand 
in  decided  separation  from  them,  while  dealing  in 
perfect  grace  toward  them.  So  long  as  Isaac  con- 


266  GENESIS. 

tinned  in  Gerar,  there  was  nothing  but  strife  and 
contention.  He  was  reaping  sorrow  for  himself,  and 
producing  no  effect  whatever  upon  those  around  him. 
On  the  contrary,  the  moment  he  went  away  from 
them,  their  hearts  were  touched,  and  they  followed 
him  and  desired  a  covenant.  This  is  very  instruct- 
ive. The  principle  unfolded  here  may  be  seen  con- 
stantly exemplified  in  the  history  of  the  children  of 
God.  The  first  point  with  the  heart  should  ever  be, 
to  see  that  in  our  position  we  are  right  ivith  God; 
and  not  only  right  in  position,  but  in  the  moral  con- 
dition of  the  soul.  When  we  are  right  with  God, 
we  may  expect  to  act  salutarily  upon  men.  The 
moment  Isaac  got  up  to  Beersheba,  and  took  his 
place  as  a  worshiper,  his  own  soul  was  refreshed, 
and  he  was  used  of  God  to  act  upon  others.  So 
long  as  we  continue  in  a  low  position,  we  are  robbing 
ourselves  of  blessing,  and  failing  totally  in  our  testi- 
mony and  service. 

Nor  should  we,  when  in  a  wrong  position,  stop  to 
inquire,  as  we  so  often  do,  Where  can  I  find  any- 
thing better  ?  God's  order  is,  "Cease  to  do  evil ;  " 
and  when  we  have  acted  upon  that  holy  precept,  we 
are  furnished  with  another,  namely,  "Learn  to  do 
well."  If  we  expect  to  "learn"  how  "to  do  well" 
before  we  "cease  to  do  evil,"  we  are  entirely  mis- 
taken. "Awake,  thou  that  sleepest,  and  arise  from 
among  the  dead  \_EK  T&V  rsxpoov']."  And  what  then ? 
"Christ  shall  give  thee  light."  (Eph.  v.  14.) 

My  beloved  reader,  if  you  are  doing  what  you 
know  to  be  wrong,  or  if  you  are  identified  in  any 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  267 

way  with  what  you  own  to  be  contrary  to  Scripture, 
hearken  to  the  word  of  the  Lord, — "  Cease  to  do 
evil;"  and,  be  assured,  when  you  have  yielded 
obedience  to  this  word,  you  will  not  long  be  left  in 
ignorance  as  to  your  path.  It  is  sheer  unbelief  that 
leads  us  to  say,  I  cannot  cease  to  do  evil,  until  I 
find  something  better.  The  Lord  grant  us  a  single 
eye  and  a  docile  spirit. 


CHAPTERS   XXVII— XXXV. 

THESE  chapters  present  to  us  the  history  of  Jacob 
— at  least,  the  principal  scenes  in  that  history. 
The  Spirit  of  God  here  sets  before  us  the  deepest 
instruction, — first,  as  to  God's  purpose  of  infinite 
grace;  and  secondly,  as  to  the  utter  worthlessness 
and  depravity  of  human  nature. 

There  is  a  passage  in  chapter  xxv  which  I  pur- 
posely passed  over,  in  order  to  take  it  up  here,  so 
that  we  might  have  the  truth  in  reference  to  Jacob 
fully  before  us, — "And  Isaac  entreated  the  Lord  for 
his  wife,  because  she  was  barren  ;  and  the  Lord  was 
entreated  of  him,  and  Rebckah  his  wife  conceived. 
And  the  children  struggled  together  within  her ;  and 
she  said,  '  If  it  be  so,  why  am  I  thus  ? '  And  she 
went  to  inquire  of  the  Lord.  And  the  Lord  said 
unto  her,  'Two  nations  are  in  thy  womb,  and  two 
manner  of  people  shall  be  separated  from  thy  bowels  ; 
and  the  one  people  shall  be  stronger  than  the  other 


268  GENESIS. 

people;  and  the  elder  shall  serve  the  younger.'" 
This  is  referred  to  in  Malachi,  where  we  read, 
"  'I  have  loved  you,'  saith  the  Lord;  \yetye  say, 
Wherein  hast  Thou  loved  us  ?  Was  not  Esau  Ja- 
cob's brother?'  saith  the  Lord;  'yet  I  have  loved 
Jacob,  and  hated  Esau.'  '  This  is  again  referred 
to  in  Romans  ix, — "(For  the  children  being  not  yet 
born,  neither  having  done  any  good  or  evil,  that  the 
purpose  of  God  according  to  election  might  stand, 
not  of  works,  but  of  Him  that  calleth;)  it  was  said 
unto  her,  'The  elder  shall  serve  the  younger.'  As 
it  is  written,  'Jacob  have  I  loved,  but  Esau  have  I 
hated.'" 

Thus  we  have  very  distinctly  before  us,  God's 
eternal  purpose  according  to  the  election  of  grace. 
There  is  much  involved  in  this  expression.  It  ban- 
ishes all  human  pretension  from  the  scene,  and  as- 
serts God's  right  to  act  as  He  will.  This  is  of  the 
very  last  importance.  The  creature  can  enjoy  no 
real  blessedness  until  he  is  brought  to  bow  his  head 
to  sovereign  grace.  It  becomes  him  so  to  do,  inas- 
much as  he  is  a  sinner,  and,  as  such,  utterly  without 
claim  to  act  or  dictate.  The  great  value  of  finding 
one's  self  on  this  ground  is,  that  it  is  then  no  longer 
a  question  of  what  we  deserve  to  get,  but  simply  of 
what  God  is  pleased  to  give.  The  prodigal  might 
talk  of  being  a  servant,  but  he  really  did  not  de- 
serve the  place  of  a  servant,  if  it  were  to  be  made  a 
question  of  desert;  and  therefore  he  had  only  to 
take  what  the  father  was  pleased  to  give,  and  that 
was,  the  very  highest  place,  even  the  place  of  fel- 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  269 

lowship   with  himself.     Thus   it   must   ever   be. — 

"Grace  all  the  work  shall  crown, 
Through  everlasting  days." 

Happy  for  us  that  it  is  so.  As  we  go  on,  day  by 
day,  making  fresh  discoveries  of  ourselves,  we  need 
to  have  beneath  our  feet  the  solid  foundation  of 
God's  grace :  nothing  else  could  possibly  sustain  us 
in  our  growing  self-knowledge.  The  ruin  is  hope- 
less, and  therefore  the  grace  must  be  infinite :  and 
infinite  it  is,  having  its  source  in  God  Himself,  its 
channel  in  Christ,  and  the  power  of  application  and 
enjoyment  in  the  Holy  Ghost.  The  Trinity  is  brought 
out  in  connection  with  the  grace  that  saves  a  poor 
sinner.  "Grace  reigns  through  righteousness,  unto 
eternal  life,  by  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord."  It  is  only 
in  redemption  that  this  reign  of  grace  could  be  seen. 
We  may  see  in  creation  the  reign  of  wisdom  and 
power ;  we  may  see  in  providence  the  reign  of  good- 
ness and  long-suffering ;  but  only  in  redemption  do 
we  see  the  reign  of  grace,  and  that,  too,  on  the 
principle  of  righteousness. 

Now,  we  have,  in  the  person  of  Jacob,  a  most 
striking  exhibition  of  the  power  of  divine  grace ; 
and  for  this  reason,  that  we  have  in  him  a  striking 
exhibition  of  the  power  of  human  nature.  In  him 
we  see  nature  in  all  its  obliquity,  and  therefore  we 
see  grace  in  all  its  moral  beauty  and"  power.  From 
the  facts  of  his  remarkable  history,  it  would  seem 
that  before  his  birth,  at  his  birth,  and  after  his  birth 
the  extraordinary  energy  of  nature  was  seen.  Be- 
fore his  birth,  we  read,  "the  children  struggled  to- 


270  GENESIS. 

gether  within  her  ;  "  at  his  birth,  we  read,  "his  hand 
took  hold  on  Esau's  heel;"  and  after  his  birth — 
yea,  to  the  turning-point  of  his  history,  in  chapter 
xxxii,  without  any  exception — his  course  exhibits 
nothing  but  the  most  unamiable  traits  of  nature ; 
but  all  this  only  serves,  like  a  dark  back-ground,  to 
throw  into  relief  the  grace  of  Him  who  condescends 
to  call  Himself  by  the  peculiarly-touching  name, 
"The  God  of  Jacob" — a  name  most  sweetly  ex- 
pressive of  free  grace. 

Let  us  now  examine  the  chapters  consecutively. 
Chapter  xxvii  exhibits  a  most  humbling  picture  of 
sensuality,  deceit  and  cunning ;  and  when  one  thinks 
of  such  things  in  connection  with  the  people  of  God, 
it  is  sad  and  painful  to  the  very  last  degree.  Yet 
how  true  and  faithful  is  the  Holy  Ghost !  He  must 
tell  all  out :  He  cannot  give  us  a  partial  picture.  If 
He  gives  us  a  history  of  man,  He  must  describe 
man  as  he  is,  and  not  as  he  is  not. 

So,  if  He  unfolds  to  us  the  character  and  ways  of 
God,  He  gives  us  God  as  He  is.  And  this,  we  need 
hardly  remark,  is  exactly  what  we  need.  We  need 
the  revelation  of  One  perfect  in  holiness,  yet  perfect 
in  grace  and  mercy ;  who  could  come  down  into  all 
the  depth  of  man's  need,  his  misery  and  his  degra- 
dation, and  deal  with  him  there,  and  raise  him  up 
out  of  it  into  fiill,  unhindered  fellowship  with  Him- 
self in  all  the  reality  of  what  He  is.  This  is  what 
Scripture  gives  us.  God  knew  what  we  needed,  and 
He  has  given  it  to  us,  blessed  be  His  name  ! 

And  be  it  remembered,  that  in  setting  before  us, 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  271 

in  faithful  love,  all  the  traits  of  man's  character,  it 
is  simply  with  a  view  to  magnify  the  riches  of  divine 
grace,  and  to  admonish  our  souls.  It  is  not,  by  any 
means,  in  order  to  perpetuate  the  memory  of  sins, 
forever  blotted  out  from  His  sight.  The  blots,  the 
failures,  and  the  errors  of  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Ja- 
cob have  been  perfectly  washed  away,  and  they  have 
taken  their  place  amid  ''the  spirits  of  just  men 
made  perfect;"  but  their  history  remains,  on  the 
page  of  inspiration,  for  the  display  of  God's  grace,, 
and  for  the  warning  of  God's  people  in  all  ages ; 
and,  moreover,  that  we  may  distinctly  see  that  the 
blessed  God  has  not  been  dealing  with  perfect  men 
and  women,  but  with  those  of  "like  passions  as  we 
are," — that  He  has  been  walking  and  bearing  with 
the  same  failures,  the  same  infirmities,  the  same 
errors,  as  those  over  which  we  mourn  every  day. 

This  is  peculiarly  comforting  to  the  heart ;  and  it 
may  well  stand  in  striking  contrast  with  the  way  in 
which  the  great  majority  of  human  biographies  are 
written,  in  which,  for  the  most  part,  we  find,  not  the 
history  of  men,  but  of  beings  devoid  of  error  and 
infirmity.  Such  histories  have  rather  the  effect  of 
discouraging  than  of  edifying  those  who  read  them. 
They  are  rather  histories  of  what  men  ought  to  be, 
than  of  what  they  really  are,  and  they  are  therefore 
useless  to  us — yea,  not  only  useless,  but  mischievous. 

Nothing  can  edify  save  the  presentation  of  God 
dealing  with  man  as  he  really  is ;  and  this  is  what 
the  Word  gives  us.  The  chapter  before  us  illustrates 
this  very  fully.  Here  we  find  the  aged  patriarch 


272 


GENESIS. 


Isaac,  standing,  as  it  were,  at  the  very  portal  of 
eternity,  the  earth  and  nature  fast  fading  away  from 
his  view,  yet  occupied  about  "savory  meat,"  and 
about  to  act  in  direct  opposition  to  the  divine  coun- 
sel, by  blessing  the  elder  instead  of  the  younger. 
Truly  this  was  nature,  and  nature  with  its  "eyes 
dim."  If  Esau  had  sold  his  birthright  for  a  mess 
of  pottage,  Isaac  was  about  to  give  away  the  bless- 
ing for  a  mess  of  venison.  How  very  humiliating  ! 
But  God's  purpose  must  stand,  and  He  will  do  all 
His  pleasure.  Faith  knows  this,  and,  in  the  power 
of  that  knowledge,  can  wait  for  God's  time.  This, 
nature  never  can  do,  but  must  set  about  gaining  its 
own  ends,  by  its  own  inventions.  These  are  the  two 
grand  points  brought  out  in  Jacob's  history — God's 
purpose  of  grace,  on  the  one  hand ;  and  on  the 
other,  nature  plotting  and  scheming  to  reach  what 
that  purpose  would  have  infallibly  brought  about, 
without  any  plot  or  scheme  at  all.  This  simplifies 
Jacob's  history  amazingly,  and  not  only  simplifies 
it,  but  heightens  the  soul's  interest  in  it  also.  There 
is  nothing,  perhaps,  in  which  we  are  so  lamentably 
deficient,  as  in  the  grace  of  patient,  self-renouncing 
dependence  upon  God.  Nature  will  be  working  in 
some  shape  or  form,  and  thus,  so  far  as  in  it  lies, 
hindering  the  outshining  of  divine  grace  and  power. 
God  did  not  need  the  aid  of  such  elements  as  Re- 
bekah's  cunning  and  Jacob's  gross  deceit,  in  order 
to  accomplish  His  purpose.  He  had  said,  "The 
elder  shall  serve  the  younger."  This  was  enough — 
enough  for  faith,  but  not  enough  for  nature,  which 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  273 

must  ever  adopt  its  own  ways,  and  know  nothing  of 
what  it  is  to  wait  on  God. 

Now,  nothing  can  be  more  truly  blessed  than  the 
position  of  hanging  in  childlike  dependence  upon 
God,  and  being  entirely  content  to  wait  for  His  time. 
True,  it  will  involve  trial ;  but  the  renewed  mind 
learns  some  of  its  deepest  lessons,  and  enjoys  some 
of  its  sweetest  experiences,  while  waiting  on  the 
Lord  ;  and  the  more  pressing  the  temptation  to  take 
ourselves  out  of  His  hands,  the  richer  will  be  the 
blessing  of  leaving  ourselves  there.  It  is  so  exceed- 
ingly sweet  to  find  ourselves  wholly  dependent  upon 
one  who  finds  infinite  joy  in  blessing  us.  It  is  only 
those  who  have  tasted,  in  any  little  measure,  the 
reality  of  this  wondrous  position  that  can  at  all 
appreciate  it.  The  only  one  who  ever  occupied  it 
perfectly  and  uninterruptedly  was  the  Lord  Jesus 
Himself.  He  was  ever  dependent  upon  God,  and 
utterly  rejected  every  proposal  of  the  enemy  to  be 
anything  else.  His  language  was,  "In  Thee  do  I 
put  My  trust ;  "  and  again,  "I  was  cast  upon  Thee 
from  the  womb."  Hence,  when  tempted  by  the 
devil  to  make  an  effort  to  satisfy  His  hunger,  His 
reply  was,  "It  is  written,  'Man  shall  not  live  by 
bread  alone,  but  by  every  word  that  proceedeth  out 
of  the  mouth  of  God/"  When  tempted  to  cast 
Himself  from  the  pinnacle  of  the  temple,  His  reply 
was,  "It  is  written  again,  'Thou  shalt  not  tempt  the 
Lord  thy  God.'  '  When  tempted  to  take  the  king- 
doms of  the  world  from  the  hand  of  another  than 
God,  and  by  doing  homage  to  another  than  Him, 


274  GENESIS. 

His  reply  was,  "It  is  written,  'Thou  shalt  worship  the 
Lord  thy  God,  and  Him  only  shalt  thou  serve.'  "  Li 
a  word,  nothing  could  allure  the  perfect  man  from 
the  place  of  absolute  dependence  upon  God.  True, 
it  was  God's  purpose  to  sustain  His  Son  ;  it  was  His 
purpose  that  He  should  suddenly  come  to  His  tem- 
ple ;  it  was  His  purpose  to  give  Him  the  kingdoms 
of  this  world ;  but  this  was  the  very  reason  why  the 
Lord  Jesus  would  simply  and  uninterruptedly  wait 
on  God  for  the  accomplishment  of  His  purpose,  in 
His  own  time  and  in  His  own  way.  He  did  not  set 
about  accomplishing  His  own  ends :  He  left  Himself 
thoroughly  at  God's  disposal.  He  would  only  eat 
when  God  gave  Him  bread ;  He  would  only  enter 
the  temple  when  sent  of  God ;  He  will  ascend  the 
throne  when  God  appoints  the  time. — "Sit  Thou  at 
My  right  hand,  until  I  make  Thy  foes  Thy  foot- 
stool." (Ps.  ex.) 

This  profound  subjection  of  the  Son  to  the  Father 
is  admirable  beyond  expression.  Though  entirely 
equal  with  God,  He  took,  as  man,  the  place  of  de- 
pendence, rejoicing  always  in  the  will  of  the  Father ; 
giving  thanks  even  when  things  seemed  to  be  against 
Him ;  doing  always  the  things  which  pleased  the 
Father ;  making  it  His  grand  and  unvarying  object 
to  glorify  the  Father;  and  finally,  when  all  was 
accomplished,  when  He  had  perfectly  finished  the 
work  which  the  Father  had  given,  He  breathed  His 
spirit  into  the  Father's  hand,  and  His  flesh  rested  in 
hope  of  the  promised  glory. and  exaltation.  Well, 
therefore,  may  the  inspired  apostle  say,  "Let  this 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  275 

mind  be  in  you,  which  was  also  in  Christ  Jesus ; 
who,  being  in  the  form  of  God,  thought  it  not  rob- 
bery to  be  equal  with  God  ;  but  made  Himself  of  no 
reputation,  and  took  upon  Him  the  form  of  a  serv- 
ant, and  was  made  in  the  likeness  of  men ;  and 
being  found  in  fashion  as  a  man,  He  humbled  Him- 
self, and  became  obedient  unto  death,  even  the 
death  of  the  cross.  Wherefore  God  also  hath  highly 
exalted  Him,  and  given  Him  a  name  which  is  above 
every  name :  that  at  the  name  of  Jesus  every  knee 
should  bow,  of  things  in  heaven,  and  things  in  earth, 
and  things  under  the  earth  ;  and  that  every  tongue 
should  confess  that  Jesus  Christ  is  Lord,  to  the  glory 
of  God  the  Father."  (Phil.  ii.  5-11.) 

How  little  Jacob  knew,  in  the  opening  of  his  his- 
tory, of  this  blessed  mind  !  How  little  was  he  pre- 
pared to  wait  for  God's  time  and  God's  way  ! — he 
much  preferred  Jacob's  time  and  Jacob's  way.  He 
thought  it  much  better  to  arrive  at  the  blessing  and 
the  inheritance  by  all  sorts  of  cunning  and  decep- 
tion than  by  simple  dependence  upon  and  subjection 
to  God,  whose  electing  grace  had  promised,  and 
whose  almighty  power  and  wisdom  would  assuredly 
accomplish  all  for  him. 

But,  oh,  how  well  one  knows  the  opposition  of  the 
human  heart  to  all  this  !  Any  attitude  for  it  save 
that  of  patient  waiting  upon  God.  It  is  almost 
enough  to  drive  nature  to  distraction  to  find  itself 
bereft  of  all  resource  but  God.  This  tells  us,  in 
language  not  to  be  misunderstood,  the  true  charac- 
ter of  human  nature.  In  order  to  know  what  nature 


276  GENESIS. 

is,  I  need  not  travel  into  those  scenes  of  vice  and 
crime  which  justly  shock  all  refined  moral  sense. 
No ;  all  that  is  needful  is  just  to  try  it  for  a  moment 
in  the  place  of  dependence,  and  see  how  it  will  carry 
itself  there.  It  really  knows  nothing  of  God,  and 
therefore  cannot  trust  Him ;  and  herein  lies  the 
secret  of  all  its  misery  and  moral  degradation.  It 
is  totally  ignorant  of  the  true  God,  and  can  therefore 
be  naught  else  but  a  ruined  and  worthless  thing. 
The  knowledge  of  God  is  the  source  of  life — yea, 
is  itself  life  ;  and  until  a  man  has  life,  what  is  he? 
or  what  can  he  be  ? 

Now,  in  Rebekah  and  Jacob,  we  see  nature  taking 
advantage  of  nature  in  Isaac  and  Esau.  It  was 
really  this.  There  was  no  waiting  upon  God  what- 
ever. Isaac's  e}'es  were  dim,  he  could  therefore  be 
imposed  upon,  and  they  set  about  doing  so,  instead 
of  looking  to  God,  who  would  have  entirely  frustra- 
ted Isaac's  purpose  to  bless  the  one  whom  God 
would  not  bless — a  purpose  founded  in  nature,  and 
most  unlovely  nature,  for  "Isaac  loved  Esau,"  not 
because  he  was  the  first-born,  but  "because  he  did 
eat  of  his  venison."  How  humiliating  ! 

But  we  are  sure  to  bring  unmixed  sorrow  upon 
ourselves  when  we  take  ourselves,  our  circumstances, 
or  our  destinies  out  of  the  hands  of  God.*  Thus 
it  was  with  Jacob,  as  we  shall  see  in  the  sequel. 
It  has  been  observed  by  another,  that  "whoever 
observes  Jacob's  life,  after  he  had  surreptitiously 

*We  should  ever  remember,  in  a  place  of  trial,  that  what  \vc 
want  is  not  a  change  of  circumstances,  but  victory  over  self. 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  277 

obtained  his  father's  blessing,  will  perceive  that  he 
enjoyed  very  little  worldly  felicity.  His  brother 
purposed  to  murder  him,  to  avoid  which  he  was 
forced  to  flee  from  his  father's  house ;  his  uncle 
Laban  deceived  him,  as  he  had  deceived  his  father, 
and  treated  him  with  great  rigor ;  after  a  servitude 
of  twenty-one  years,  he  was  obliged  to  leave  him  in 
a  clandestine  manner,  and  not  without  clanger  of 
being  brought  back,  or  murdered  by  his  enraged 
brother;  no  sooner  were  these  fears  over,  than  he 
experienced  the  baseness  of  his  son  Reuben,  in  de- 
filing his  bed ;  he  had  next  to  bewail  the  treachery 
and  cruelty  of  Simeon  and  Levi  towards  the  She- 
chemites  ;  then  he  had  to  feel  the  loss  of  his  beloved 
wife ;  he  was  next  imposed  upon  by  his  own  sons, 
and  had  to  lament  the  supposed  untimely  end  of 
Joseph ;  and,  to  complete  all,  he  was  forced  by 
famine  to  go  into  Egypt,  and  there  died  in  a  strange 
land.  So  just,  wonderful,  and  instructive  are  all 
the  ways  of  providence." 

This  is  a  true  picture,  so  far  as  Jacob  was  con- 
cerned ;  but  it  only  gives  us  one  side,  and  that  the 
gloomy  side.  Blessed  be  God,  there  is  a  bright  side 
likewise,  for  God  had  to  do  with  Jacob ;  and,  in 
every  scene  of  his  life, .when  Jacob  was  called  to 
reap  the  fruits  of  his  own  plotting  and  crookedness, 
the  God  of  Jacob  brought  good  out  of  evil,  and 
caused  His  grace  to  abound  over  all  the  sin  and 
folly  of  His  poor  servant.  This  we  shall  see  as  we 
proceed  with  his  history. 

I  shall  just  offer  a  remark  here  upon  Isaac,  Re- 


278  GENESIS. 

bekah  and  Esau.  It  is  very  interesting  to  observe 
how,  notwithstanding  the  exhibition  of  nature's  ex- 
cessive weakness,  in  the  opening  of  this  twenty-sev- 
enth chapter,  Isaac  maintains,  by  faith,  the  dignity 
which  God  had  conferred  upon  him.  He  blesses  with 
all  the  consciousness  of  being  endowed  with  power 
to  bless.  He  says,  "I  have  blessed  him  ;  yea,  and 
he  shall  be  blessed.  .  .  .  Behold,  I  have  made  him 
thy  lord,  and  all  his  brethren  have  I  given  to  him  for 
servants ;  and  with  corn  and  wine  have  I  sustained 
him  ;  and  what  shall  I  do  now  unto  thee,  my  son? " 
He  speaks  as  one  who,  by  faith,  had  at  his  disposal 
all  the  treasures  of  earth.  There  is  no  false  humility, 
no  taking  a  low  ground  by  reason  of  the  manifesta- 
tion of  nature.  True,  he  was  on  the  eve  of  making 
a  grievous  mistake — even  of  moving  right  athwart 
the  counsel  of  God ;  still,  he  knew  God,  and  took 
his  place  accordingly,  dispensing  blessings  in  all  the 
dignity  and  power  of  faith. — "I  have  blessed  him; 

yea,  and  he  shall  be  blessed With  corn 

and  wine  have  I  sustained  him."  It  is  the  proper 
province  of  faith  to  rise  above  all  one's  own  failure 
and  the  consequences  thereof,  into  the  place  where 
God's  grace  has  set  us. 

As  to  Rebekah,  she  was  called  to  feel  all  the  sad 
results  of  her  cunning  actings.  She  no  doubt  imag- 
ined she  was  managing  matters  most  skillfully  ;  but, 
alas !  she  never  saw  Jacob  again :  so  much  for  man- 
agement!  How  different  it  would  have  been  hnd 
she  left  the  matter  entirely  in  the  hands  of  God  ! 
This  is  the  way  in  which  faith  manages,  and  it  is 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  279 

ever  a  gainer.  "Which  of  3*011  by  taking  thought 
can  add  to  his  stature  one* cubit?"  We  gain  no- 
thing by  our  anxiety  and  planning ;  we  only  shut 
out  God,  and  that  is  no  gain.  It  is  a  just  judgment 
from  the  hand  of  God  to  be  left  to  reap  the  fruits  of 
our  own  devices ;  and  I  know  of  few  things  more 
sad  than  to  see  a  child  of  God  so  entirely  forgetting 
his  proper  place  and  privilege  as  to  take  the  man- 
agement of  his  affairs  into  his  own  hands.  The 
birds  of  the  air  and  the  lilies  of  the  field  may  well 
be  our  teachers  when  we  so  far  forget  our  position 
of  unqualified  dependence  upon  God. 

Then,  again,  as  to  Esau,  the  apostle  calls  him  "a 
profane  person,  who  for  one  morsel  of  meat  sold  his 
birthright,"  and  "afterwards,  when  he  would  have 
inherited  the  blessing,  he  was  rejected  ;  for  he  found 
no  place  of  change  of  mind,  though  he  sought  it 
carefully  with  tears."  Thus  we  learn  what  a  profane 
person  is,  viz.,  one  who  would  like  to  hold  both 
worlds, — one  who  would  like  to  enjoy  the  present 
without  forfeiting  his  title  to  the  future.  This  is  by 
no  means  an  uncommon  case.  It  expresses  to  us 
the  mere  worldly  professor,  whose  conscience  has 
'never  felt  the  action  of  divine  truth,  and  whose 
heart  has  never  felt  the  influence  of  divine  grace. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

WE  are  now  called  to  trace  Jacob  in  his  move- 
ment from  under  his  father's  roof,  to  view 
him  as  a  homeless  and  lonely  wanderer  on  the  earth. 
19 


280  GENESIS. 

It  is  here  that  God's  special  dealings  with  him  com- 
mence. Jacob  now  begins  to  realize,  in  some  meas- 
ure, the  bitter  fruit  of  his  conduct  in  reference  to 
Esau ;  while,  at  the  same  time,  God  is  seen  rising 
above  all  the  weakness  and  folly  of  His  servant,  and 
displaying  His  own  sovereign  grace  and  profound 
wisdom  in  His  dealings  with  him.  God  will  accom- 
plish His  own  purpose,  no  matter  by  what  instru- 
mentality ;  but  if  His  child,  in  impatience  of  spirit 
and  unbelief  of  heart,  will  take  himself  out  of  His 
hands,  he  must  expect  much  sorrowful  exercise  and 
painful  discipline.  Thus  it  was  with  Jacob:  he 
might  not  have  had  to  flee  to  Haran  had  he  allowed 
God  to  act  for  him.  God  would  assuredly  have 
dealt  with  Esau,  and  caused  him  to  find  his  destined 
place  and  portion ;  and  Jacob  might  have  enjoyed 
that  sweet  peace  which  nothing  can  yield  save  entire 
subjection  in  all  things  to  the  hand  and  counsel  of 
God. 

But  here  is  where  the  excessive  feebleness  of  our 
hearts  is  constantly  disclosed.  We  do  not  lie  pas- 
sive in  God's  hand, — we  will  be  acting ;  and,  by  our 
acting,  we  hinder  the  display  of  God's  grace  and 
power  on  our  behalf.  "Be  still  and  know  that  I  am 
God, "  is  a  precept  which  naught,  save  the  power  of 
divine  grace,  can  enable  one  to  obey.  uLet  your 
moderation  be  known  unto  all  men.  The  Lord  is 
at  hand  \£yyv{\.  Be  careful  for  nothing;  but  in 
everything  by  prayer  and  supplication  with  thanks- 
giving let  your  requests  be  made  known  unto  God." 
What  will  be  the  result  of  thus  acting  ?  "The  peace 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  281 

of  God,  which  passeth  all  understanding,  shall  gar- 
rison \_q>p ovprjtiei]  your  hearts  and  minds  by  Christ 
Jesus."  (Phil.  iv.  5-7.) 

However,  God  graciously  overrules  our  folly  and 
weakness,  and  while  we  are  called  upon  to  reap  the 
fruits  of  our  unbelieving  and  impatient  ways,  He 
takes  occasion  from  them  to  teach  our  hearts  still 
deeper  lessons  of  His  own  tender  grace  and  perfect 
wisdom.  This,  while  it  assuredly  affords  no  warrant 
whatever  for  unbelief  and  impatience,  does  most 
wonderfully  exhibit  the  goodness  of  our  God,  and 
comfort  the  heart  even  while  we  may  be  passing 
through  the  painful  circumstances  consequent  upon 
our  failure.  God  is  above  all ;  and,  moreover,  it  is 
His  special  prerogative  to  bring  good  out  of  evil, — 
to  make  the  eater  yield  meat,  and  the  strong  yield 
sweetness;  and  hence,  while  it  is  quite  true  that 
Jacob  was  compelled  to  be  an  exile  from  his  father's 
roof  in  consequence  of  his  own  restless  and  deceitful 
acting,  it  is  equally  true  that  he  never  could  have 
learnt  the  meaning  of  "Bethel"  had  he  been  quietly 
at  home.  Thus  the  two  sides  of  the  picture  are 
strongly  marked  in  every  scene  of  Jacob's  history. 
It  was  when  he  was  driven,  by  his  own  folly,  from 
Isaac's  house,  that  he  was  led  to  taste,  in  some 
measure,  the  blessedness  and  solemnity  of  "God's 
house." 

"And  Jacob  went  out  from  Beersheba,  and  went 
toward  Haran.  And  he  lighted  upon  a  ce.rtain  place, 
and  tarried  there  all  night,  because  the  sun  was  set ; 
and  he  took  of  the  stones -of  that  place  and  put 


282  GENESIS. 

them  for  his  pillows,  and  lay  down  in  that  place  to 
sleep."  Here  we  find  the  homeless  wanderer  just  in 
the  very  position  in  which  God  could  meet  him,  and 
in  which  Pie  could  unfold  His  purposes  of  grace  and 
glory.  Nothing  could  possibly  be  more  expressive 
of  helplessness  and  nothingness  than  Jacob's  condi- 
tion as  here  set  before  us.  Beneath  the  open  canopy 
of  heaven,  with  a  pillow  of  stone,  in  the  helpless  con- 
dition of  sleep.  Thus  it  was  that  the  God  of  Bethel 
unfolded  to  Jacob  His  purposes  respecting  him  and 
his  seed.  "And  he  dreamed,  and  behold  a  ladder 
set  up  on  the  earth,  and  the  top  of  it  reached  to 
heaven:  and  behold  the  angels  of  God  ascending 
and  descending  on  it.  And  behold  the  Lord  stood 
above  it,  and  said,  '  I  am  the  Lord  God  of  Abraham 
thy  father,  and  the  God  of  Isaac :  the  land  wrhereon 
thou  Rest,  to  thee  will  I  give  it,  and  to  thy  seed. 
And  thy  seed  shall  be  as  the  dust  of  the  earth,  and 
thou  shalt  spread  abroad  to  the  west,  and  to  the 
east,  and  to  the  north,  and  to  the  south  ;  and  in  thee 
and  in  thy  seed  shall  all  the  families  of  the  earth  be 
blessed.  And,  behold,  I  am  with  thee,  and  will  keep 
thee  in  all  places  whither  thou  goest,  and  will  bring 
thee  again  into  this  land  ;  for  I  will  not  leave  thee  un- 
til I  have  done  that  which  I  have  spoken  to  thee  of. " ' 
Here  we  have,  indeed,  "grace  and  glory."  The 
ladder  "seto?i  the  earth"  naturally  leads  the  heart 
to  meditate  on  the  display  of  God's  grace,  in  the 
Person  and  work  of  His  Son.  On  the  earth  it  was 
that  the  wondrous  work  was  accomplished  which 
forms  the  basis — the  strong  and  everlasting  basis — 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  283 

of  all  the  divine  counsels  in  reference  to  Israel,  the 
Church,  and  the  world  at  large.  On  the  earth  it  was 
that  Jesus  lived,  labored  and  died  ;  that,  through 
His  death,  He  might  remove  out  of  the  way  every 
obstacle  to  the  accomplishment  of  the  divine  pur- 
pose of  blessing  to  man. 

But  "the  top  of  the  ladder  reached  to  heaven." 
It  formed  the  medium  of  communication  between 
heaven  and  earth;  and  "behold  the  angels  of  God 
ascending  and  descending  upon  it," — striking  and 
beautiful  picture  of  Him  by  whom  God  has  come 
down  into  all  the  depth  of  man's  need,  and  by  whom 
also  He  has  brought  man  up  and  set  him  in  his  own 
presence  forever,  in  the  power  of  divine  righteous- 
ness !  God  lias  made  provision  for  the  accomplish- 
ment of  all  His  plans,  despite  of  man's  folly  and 
sin  ;  and  it  is  for  the  everlasting  joy  of  any  soul  to 
find  itself,  by  the  teaching  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  with- 
in the  limits  of  God's  gracious  purpose! 

The  prophet  Hosca  leads  us  on  to  the  time  when 
that  which  was  foreshadowed  by  Jacob's  ladder  shall 
have  its  full  accomplishment. — "And  in  that  day  I 
will  make  a  covenant  for  them  with  the  beasts  of  the 
field,  and  with  the  fowls  of  heaven,  and  with  the 
creeping  things  of  the  ground  ;  and  I  will  break  the 
bow  and  the  sword  and  the  battle  out  of  the  earth, 
and  will  make  them  to  lie  down  safely.  And  I  will 
betroth  thee  unto  Me  forever ;  yea,  I  will  betroth 
thce  unto  Me  in  righteousness  and  in  judgment  and 
in  loving-kindness  and  in  mercies ;  I  will  even  be- 
troth thee  unto  Me  in  faithfulness,  and  thou  shalt 


284  GENESIS. 

know  the  Lord.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass  in  that 
day,  I  will  hear,  saith  the  Lord,  I  will  hear  the  heav- 
ens, and  they  shall  hear  the  earth,  and  the  earth 
shall  hear  the  corn  and  the  wine  and  the  oil,  and 
they  shall  hear  Jezreel.  And  I  will  sow  her  unto  Me 
in  the  earth ;  and  I  will  have  mercy  upon  her  that 
had  not  obtained  mercy ;  and  I  will  say  to  them 
which  were  not  My  people,  Thou  art  My  people ; 
and  they  shall  say,  Thou  art  my  God."  (Hosea  ii. 
18-23.)  There  is  also  an  expression  in  the  first 
chapter  of  John,  bearing  upon  Jacob's  remarkable 
vision;  it  is  Christ's  word  to  Nathanael — "Verily, 
verily,  I  say  unto  you,  Hereafter  ye  shall  see  heaven 
open,  and  the  angels  of  God  ascending  and  descend- 
ing upon  the  Son  of  Man."  (Ver.  51.) 

Now  this  vision  of  Jacob's  is  a  very  blessed  dis- 
closure of  divine  grace  to  Israel.  We  have  been  led 
to  see  something  of  Jacob's  real  character,  some- 
thing, too,  of  his  real  condition  ;  both  were  evidently 
such  as  to  show  that  it  should  either  be  divine  grace 
for  him,  or  nothing.  By  birth  he  had  no  claim  ;  nor 
yet  by  character.  Esau  might  put  forward  some 
claim  on  both  these  grounds  (*'.<?.,  provided  God's 
prerogative  were  set  aside),  but  Jacob  had  no  claim 
whatsoever ;  and  hence,  while  Esau  could  only  stand 
upon  the  exclusion  of  God's  prerogative,  Jacob  could 
only  stand  upon  the  introduction  and  establishment 
thereof.  Jacob  was  such  a  sinner,  and  so  utterly 
divested  of  all  claim,  both  by  birth  and  by  practice, 
that  he  had  nothing  whatever  to  rest  upon  save  God's 
purpose  of  pure,  free,  and  sovereign  grace.  Hence, 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  285 

in  the  revelation  which  the  Lord  makes  to  His  chosen 
servant  in  the  passage  just  quoted,  it  is  a  simple 
record  or  prediction  of  what  He  Himself  would  yet 
do.  ' '  /  am  .  .  .  .  /  will  give  .  .  .  .  I  will  keep 

/  will  bring /  will  not  leave  thee 

until  /  have  done  that  which  I  have  spoken  to  thee 
of."  It  was  all  Himself.  There  is  no  condition 
whatever, — no  if  or  but ;  for  when  grace  acts,  there 
can  be  no  such  thing.  Where  there  is  an  if,  it  can- 
not possibly  be  grace.  Not  that  God  cannot  put 
man  into  a  position  of  responsibility,  in  which  -He 
must  needs  address  him  with  an  "if."  We  know 
He  can ;  but  Jacob  asleep  on  a  pillow  of  stone  was 
not  in  a  position  of  responsibility,  but  of  the  deepest 
helplessness  and  need ;  and  therefore  he  was  in  a 
position  to  receive  a  revelation  of  the  fullest,  richest, 
and  most  unconditional  grace. 

Now,  we  cannot  but  own  the  blessedness  of  being 
in  such  a  condition  that  we  have  nothing  to  rest 
upon  save  God  Himself;  and,  moreover,  that  it  is 
in  the  most  perfect  establishment  of  God's  own 
character  and  prerogative  that  we  obtain  all  our 
true  joy  and  blessing.  According  to  this  principle, 
it  would  be  an  irreparable  loss  to  us  to  have  any 
ground  of  our  own  to  stand  upon ;  for  in  that  case, 
God  should  address  us  on  the  ground  of  responsi- 
bility, and  failure  would  then  be  inevitable.  Jacob 
was  so  bad,  that  none  but  God  Himself  could  do 
for  him. 

And  be  it  remarked,  that  it  was  his  failure  in  the 
habitual  recognition  of  this  that  led  him  into  so 


286  GENESIS. 

much  sorrow  and  pressure.  God's  revelation  of 
Himself  is  one  thing,  and  our  resting  in  that  revela- 
tion is  quite  another.  God  shows  Himself  to  Jacob, 
in  infinite  grace ;  but  no  sooner  does  Jacob  awake 
out  of  sleep,  than  we  find  him  developing  his  true 
character,  and  proving  how  little  he  knew,  practi- 
cally, of  the  blessed  One  who  had  just  been  reveal- 
ing Himself  so  marvelously  to  him.  "He  was  afraid, 
and  said,  'How  dreadful  is  this  place  !  This  is  none 
other  but  the  house  of  God,  and  this  is  the  gate  of 
heaven.'  "  His  heart  was  not  at  home  in  the  presence 
of  God ;  nor  can  any  heart  be  so  until  it  has  been 
thoroughly  emptied  and  broken.  God  is  at  home, 
blessed  be  His  name,  with  a  broken  heart,  and  a 
broken  heart  at  home  with  Him.  But  Jacob's  heart 
was  not  yet  in  this  condition  ;  nor  had  he  yet  learnt 
to  repose,  like  a  little  child,  in  the  perfect  love  of 
one  who  could  say,  "Jacob  have  I  loved."  "Per- 
fect love  casteth  out  fear;"  but  where  such  love  is 
not  known  and  fully  realized,  there  will  always  be 
a  measure  of  uneasiness  and  perturbation.  God's 
house  and  God's  presence  are  not  dreadful  to  a 
soul  who  knows  the  love  of  God  as  expressed  in  the 
perfect  sacrifice  of  Christ :  such  a  soul  is  rather  led 
to  say,  "Lord,  I  have  loved  the  habitation  of  Thy 
house,  and  the  place  where  Thine  honor  dwelleth." 
(Ps.  xxvi.  8.)  And  again,  "One  thing  have  I  de- 
sired of  the  Lord,  that  will  I  seek  after ;  that  I  may 
dwell  in  the  house  of  the  Lord  all  the  days  of  my 
life,  to  -behold  the  beauty  of  the  Lord,  and  to  inquire 
in  His  temple."  (Ps.  xxvii.  4.)  And  again,  "How 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  287 

amiable  are  Thy  tabernacles,  O  Lord  of  hosts  !  My 
soul  longeth,  yea,  even  fainteth,  for  the  courts  of 
the  Lord."  (Ps.  Ixxxiv.)  When  the  heart  is  estab- 
lished in  the  knowledge  of  God,  it  will  assuredly 
love  His  house,  whatever  the  character  of  that  house 
may  be, — whether  it  be  Bethel,  or  the  temple  at 
Jerusalem,  or  the  Church  now  composed  of  all  true 
believers,  "builded  together  for  a  habitation  of  God 
through  the  Spirit."  However,  Jacob's  knowledge 
both  of  God  and  His  house  was  very  shallow  at  that 
point  in  his  history  on  which  we  are  now  dwelling. 

We  shall  have  occasion  again  to  refer  to  some 
principles  connected  with  Bethel,  and  shall  now 
close  our  meditations  upon  this  chapter  with  a  brief 
notice  of  Jacob's  bargain  with  God,  so  truly  charac- 
teristic of  him,  and  so  demonstrative  of  the  truth  of 
the  statement  with  respect  to  the  shallowness  of  his 
knowledge  of  the  divine  character.  "And  Jacob 
vowed  a  vow,  saying,  'If, God  will  be  with  me,  and 
will  keep  me  in  this  way  that  I  go,  so  that  I  come 
again  to  my  father's  house  in  peace,  then  shall  the 
Lord  be  my  God,  and  this  stone  which  I  have  set 
for  a  pillar  shall  be  God's  house,  and  of  all  that 
Thou  shalt  give  me  I  will  surely  give  the  tenth  unto 
Thee. '  "  Observe,  "If  God  will  be  with  me. ' '  Now, 
the  Lord  had  just  said,  emphatically,  "I  am  with 
thee,  and  will  keep  tliee  in  all  places  whither  thou  go- 
est,  and  will  bring  thee  again  into  this  land,"  etc. 
And  yet  poor  Jacob's  heart  cannot  get  beyond  an 
"(/*;"  nor,  in  its  thoughts  of  God's  goodness,  can 
it  rise  higher  than  "bread  to  eat  and  raiment  to  put 


288  GENESIS. 

on."  Such  were  the  thoughts  of  one  who  had  just 
seen  the  magnificent  vision  of  the  ladder  reaching 
from  earth  to  heaven,  with  the  Lord  standing  above, 
and  promising  an  innumerable  seed  and  an  everlast- 
ing possession.  Jacob  was  evidently  unable  to  enter 
into  the  reality  and  fullness  of  God's  thoughts.  He 
measured  God  by  himself,  and  thus  utterly  failed  to 
apprehend  Him.  In  short,  Jacob  had  not  yet  really 
got  to  the  end  of  himself;  and  hence  he  had  not 
really  begun  with  God. 


CHAPTERS   XXIX— XXXI. 

Jacob  went  on  his  journey,  and  came 
into  the  land  of  the  people  of  the  east. ' '  As 
we  have  just  seen,  in  chapter  xxviii  Jacob  utterly 
fails  in  the  apprehension  of  God's  real  character, 
and  meets  all  the  rich  grace  of  Bethel  with  an  "if," 
and  a  miserable  bargain  about  food  and  raiment. 
We  now  follow  him  into  a  scene  of  thorough  bargain- 
making.  "  Whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall  he 
also  reap."  There  is  no  possibility  of  escaping  from 
this.  Jacob  had  not -yet  found  his  true  level  in  the 
presence  of  God,  and  therefore  God  uses  circum- 
stances to  chasten  and  break  him  down. 

This  is  the  real  secret  of  much,  very  much,  of  our 
sorrow  and  trial  in  the  world.  Our  hearts  have  never 
been  really  broken  before  the  Lord, — we  have  never 
been  self-judged  and  self-emptied;  and  hence,  again 
and  again,  we,  as  it  were,  knock  our  heads  against 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  289 

the  wall.  No  one  can  really  enjoy  God  until  he  has 
got  to  the^bottom  of  self,  and  for  this  plain  reason, 
that  God  has  begun  the  display  of  Himself  at  the 
very  point  at  which  the  end  of  flesh  is  seen.  If, 
therefore,  I  have  not  reached  the  end  of  my  flesh,  in 
the  deep  and  positive  experience  of  my  soul,  it  is 
morally  impossible  that  I  can  have  anything  like  a 
just  apprehension  of  God's  character.  But  I  must, 
in  some  way  or  other,  be  conducted  to  the  true 
measure  of  nature.  To  accomplish  this  end,  the 
Lord  makes  use  of  various  agencies,  which,  no  mat- 
ter what  they  are,  are  only  effectual  when  used  by 
Him  for  the  purpose  of  disclosing,  in  our  view,  the 
true  character  of  all  that  is  in  our  hearts.  How 
often  do  wfe  find,  as  in  Jacob's  case,  that  even  al- 
though the  Lord  may  come  near  to  us  and  speak  in 
our  ears,  yet  we  do  not  understand  His  voice  or  take 
our  true  place  in  His  presence.  "The  Lord  is  in 
this  place,  and  I  knew  it  not  ....  How  dreadful 
is  this  place  !  "  Jacob  learnt  nothing  by  all  this, 
and  it  therefore  needed  twenty  years  of  terrible 
schooling,  and  that,  too,  in  a  school  marvelously 
adapted  to  his  flesh ;  and  even  that,  as  we  shall  see, 
was  not  sufficient  to  break  him  down. 

However,  it  is  remarkable  to  see  how  he  gets  back 
into  an  atmosphere  so  entirely  suited  to  his  moral 
constitution.  The  bargain-making  Jacob  meets  with 
the  bargain-making  Laban,  and  they  are  both  seen, 
as  it  were,  straining  every  nerve  to  outwit  each  other. 
Nor  can  we  wonder  at  Laban,  for  he  had  never  been 
at  Bethel, — he  had  seen  no  open  heaven,  with  a 


290  GENESIS. 

ladder  reaching  from  thence  to  earth, — he  had  heard 
no  magnificent  promises  from  the  lips  of  Jehovah, 
securing  to  him  all  the  land  of  Canaan,  with  a  count- 
less seed :  no  marvel,  therefore,  that  he  should  ex- 
hibit a  grasping  groveling  spirit ;  he  had  no  other 
resource.  It  is  useless  to  expect  from  worldly  men 
aught  but  a  worldly  spirit,  and  worldly  principles 
and  ways;  they  have  gotten  naught  superior,  and 
you  cannot  bring  a  clean  thing  out  of  an  unclean. 
But  to  find  Jacob,  after  all  he  had  seen  and  heard  at 
Bethel,  struggling  with  a  man  of  the  world,  and  en- 
deavoring, by  such  means,  to  accumulate  property, 
is  peculiarly  humbling. 

And  yet,  alas !  it  is  no  uncommon  thing  to  find 
the  children  of  God  thus  forgetting  their  high  des- 
tinies and  heavenly  inheritance,  and  descending  into 
the  arena  with  the  children  of  this  world,  to  struggle 
there  for  the  riches  and  honors  of  a  perishing,  sin- 
stricken  earth.  Indeed,  to  such  an  extent  is  this 
true  in  many  instances,  that  it  is  often  hard  to  trace 
a  single  evidence  of  that  principle  which  St.  John 
tells  us  "overcometh  the  world."  Looking  at  Jacob 
and  Laban,  and  judging  of  them  upon  natural  prin- 
ciples, it  would  be  hard  to  trace  any  difference.  One 
should  get  behind  the  scenes,  and  enter  into  God's 
thoughts  about  both,  in  order  to  see  how  widely  they 
differed.  But  it  was  God  that  had  made  them  to  differ, 
not  Jacob  ;  and  so  it  is  now.  Difficult  as  it  may  be 
to  trace  any  difference  between  the  children  of  light 
and  the  children  of  darkness,  there  is,  nevertheless, 
a  very  wide  difference  indeed, — a  difference  founded 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  291 

on  the  solemn  fact  that  the  former  are  "the  vessels 
of  mercy,  which  God  has  afore  prepared  unto  glory," 
while  the  latter  are  "the  vessels  of  wrath,  fitted  [not 
by  God,  but  by  sin]  to  destruction."*  (Rom.  ix. 
22,  23.)  This  makes  a  very  serious  difference.  The 
Jacobs  and  the  Labans  differ  materially,  and  have 
differed,  and  will  differ  forever,  though  the  former 
may  so  sadly  fail  in  the  realization  and  practical 
exhibition  of  their  true  character  and  dignity. 

Now,  in  Jacob's  case,  as  set  forth  in  the  three 
chapters  now  before  us,  all  his  'toiling  and  working, 
like  his  wretched  bargain  before,  is  the  result  of  his 


*It  is  deeply  interesting  to  the  spiritual  mind  to  mark  ho\v  sedu- 
lously the  Spirit  of  God,  in  Romans  ix,  and  indeed  throughout  all 
scripture,  guards  against  the  horrid  inference  which  the  human 
mind  draws  from  tho  doctrine  of  God's  election.  When  He  speaks 
of  "  vessels  of  wrath,"  He  simply  says,  "  litted  to  destruction  ; "  He 
docs  not  say  that  God  "litted"  them.  Whereas,  on  the  other  hand, 
when  He  refers  to  "  the  vessels  of  mercy,"  He  says,  "whom  He  had 
afore  prepared  unto  glory."  This  is  most  marked. . 

If  my  reader  will  turn  for  a  moment  to  Matthew  xxv.  34-41,  he 
will  iind  another  striking  and  beautiful  instance  of  the  same  thing. 

When  the  King  addresses  those  on  His  right  hand,  He  says, 
"Come,  ye  blessed  of  My  Father,  inherit  the  kingdom  prepared  for 
you  from  the  foundation  of  the  world."  (Verse  34.)  But  when  He 
addresses  those  on  His  left,  He  says, "Depart  from  Me, ye  cursed." 
He  does  not  say,  Cui'sed  of  My  Father.  And  further,  He  says, 
"  Into  everlasting  lire,  prepared  [not  for  you,  but]  for  the  devil  and 
his  angels."  (Verse  41.) 

In  a  word,  then,  it  is  plain  that  God  has  "prepared"  a  kingdom 
of  glory,  and  "vessels  of  mercy"  to  inherit  that  kingdom;  but.  He 
has  not  prepared  "  everlasting  lire"  for  men,  but  for"  the  devil  and 
his  angels;"  nor  has  He  litted  the  "vessels  of  wrath,"  but  they 
have  litted  themselves. 

The  Word  of  God  as  clearly  establishes  "  election"  as  it  sedulously 
guards  against  "reprobation."  Kvery  one  who  llnds  himself  in 
heaven  will  have  to  thank  God  for  it,  and  every  one  that  iiuds  him* 
self  in  hell  will  have  to  thank  himself. 


292  GENESIS. 

ignorance  of  God's  grace,  and  his  inability  to  put 
implicit  confidence  in  God's  promise.  The  man  that 
could  say,  after  a  most  unqualified  promise  from 
God  to  give  him  the  whole  land  of  Canaan,  "!F 
God  will  give  me  food  to  eat  and  raiment  to  put 
on,"  could  have  had  but  a  very  faint  apprehension 
of  who  God  was,  or  what  His  promise  was  either ; 
and  because  of  this,  we  see  him  seeking  to  do  the 
best  he  can  for  himself.  This  is  always  the  way 
when  grace  is  not  understood:  the  principles  of 
grace  may  be  professed,  but  the  real  measure  of  our 
experience  of  the  power  of  grace  is  quite  another 
thing.  One  would  have  imagined  that  Jacob's  vision 
had  told  him  a  tale  of  grace ;  but  God's  revelation 
at  Bethel,  and  Jacob's  actings  at  Haran,  are  two 
very  different  things ;  yet  the  latter  tell  out  what 
was  Jacob's  sense  of  the  former.  Character  and 
conduct  prove  the  real  measure  of  the  soul's  expe- 
rience and  conviction,  whatever  the  profession  may 
be.  But  Jacob  had  never  yet  been  brought  to 
measure  himself  in  God's  presence,  and  therefore 
he  was  ignorant  of  grace,  and  he  proved  his  igno- 
rance by  measuring  himself  with  Laban,  and  adopt- 
ing his  maxims  and  ways. 

One  cannot  help  remarking  the  fact  that  inasmuch 
as  Jacob  failed  to  learn  and  judge  the  inherent  char- 
acter of  his  flesh  before  God,  therefore  he  was,  in 
the  providence  of  God,  led  into  the  very  sphere  in 
which  that  character  was  fully  exhibited  in  its  broad- 
est lines.  He  was  conducted  to  Haran,  the  country 
of  Laban  and  Rebekah,  the  very  school  from  whence 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  293 

those  principles,  in  which  he  was  such  a  remarkable 
adept,  had  emanated,  and  where  they  were  taught, 
exhibited  and  maintained.  If  one  wanted  to  learn 
what  God  was,  he  should  go  to  Bethel ;  if  to  learn 
what  man  was,  he  should  go  to  Haran.  But  Jacob 
had  failed  to  take  in  God's  revelation  of  Himself  at 
Bethel,  and  he  therefore  went  to  Haran,  and  there 
showed  what  he  was, — and  oh,  what  scrambling  and 
scraping  !  what  shuffling  and  shifting  !  There  is  no 
holy  and  elevated  confidence  in  God,  no  simply 
looking  to  and  waiting  on  Him.  True,  God  was 
with  Jacob — for  nothing  can  hinder  the  outshinings 
of  divine  grace.  Moreover,  Jacob  in  a  measure 
owns  God's  presence  and  faithfulness  ;  still  nothing 
can  be  done  without  a  scheme  and  a  plan.  Jacob 
cannot  allow  God  to  settle  the  question  as  to  his 
wives  and  his  wages,  but  seeks  to  settle  all  by  his  own 
cunning  and  management.  In  short,  it  is  "the  sup- 
planter"  throughout.  Let  the  reader  turn,  for  ex- 
ample, to  chapter  xxx.  37-42,  and  say  where  he  can 
find  a  more  masterly  piece  of  cunning.  It  is  verily 
a  perfect  picture  of  Jacob.  In  place  of  allowing  God 
to  multiply  "the  ringstraked,  speckled,  and  spotted 
cattle,"  as  He  most  assuredly  would  have  done 
had  He  been  trusted,  he  sets  about  securing  their 
multiplication  by  a  piece  of  policy  which  could  only 
have  found  its  origin  in  the  mind  of  a  Jacob.  So 
in  all  his  actings,  during  his  twenty  years'  sojourn 
with  Laban ;  and  finally,  he  most  characteristically 
"steals  away,"  thus  maintaining  in  everything  his 
consistency  with  himself. 


294  GENESIS. 

Now,  it  is  in  tracing  out  Jacob's  real  character, 
from  stage  to  stage  of  his  extraordinary  histoiy,  that 
one  gets  a  wondrous  view  of  divine  grace.  None 
but  God  could  have  borne  with  such  an  one,  as  none 
but  God  would  have  taken  such  an  one  up.  Grace 
begins  at  the  very  lowest  point, — it  takes  up  man  as 
he  is,  and  deals  with  him  in  the  full  intelligence  of 
what  he  is.  It  is  of  the  very  last  importance  to 
understand  this  feature  of  grace  at  one's  first  start- 
ing; it  enables  us  to  "bear,  with  steadiness  of  heart, 
the  after-discoveries  of  personal  vileness,  which  so 
frequently  shake  the  confidence  and  disturb  the 
peace  of  the  children  of  God. 

Many  there  are  who,  at  first,  fail  in  the  full  appre- 
hension of  the  utter  ruin  of  nature,  as  looked  at  in 
God's  presence,  though  their  hearts  have  been  at- 
tracted by  the  grace  of  God,  and  their  consciences 
tranquilized,  in  some  degree,  by  the  application  of 
the  blood  of  Christ.  Hence,  as  they  get  on  in  their 
course,  they  begin  to  make  deeper  discoveries  of  the 
evil  within,  and,  being  deficient  in  their  apprehen- 
sions of  God's  grace,  and  the  extent  and  efficacy  of 
the  sacrifice  of  Christ,  they  immediately  raise  a 
question  as  to  their  being  children  of  God  at  all. 
Thus  they  are  taken  off  Christ  and  thrown  on  them- 
selves, and  then  they  either  betake  themselves  to 
ordinances  in  order  to  keep  up  their  tone  of  devo- 
tion, or  else  fall  back  into  thorough  worldliness  and 
carnality.  These  are  disastrous  consequences,  and 
all  the  result  of  not  having  "the  heart  established 
in  orace." 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  295 

It  is  this  that  renders  the  study  of  Jacob's  history 
so  profoundly  interesting  and  eminently  useful.  No 
one  can  read  the  three  chapters  now  before  us  .and 
not  be  struck  at  th«  amazing  grace  that  could  take 
up  such  an  one  as  Jacob,  and  not  only  take  him  up, 
but  say,  after  the  full  discovery  of  all  that  was  in 
him,  "lie  hath  not  beheld  iniquity  in  Jacob,  neither 
hath  He  seen  perverseness  in  Israel."  (Numb,  xxiii. 
21.)  He  does  not  say  that  iniquity  and  perverseness 
were  not  in  him.  This  would  never  give  the  heart 
confidence — the  very  thing,  above  all  others,  which 
God  desires  to  give.  It  could  never  assure  a  poor 
sinner's  heart  to  be  told  that  there  was  no  sin  in 
him ;  for,  alas  !  he  knows  too  well  there  is ;  but  to 
be  told  there  is  no  sin  on  him,  and  that,  moreover, 
in  God's  sight,  on  the  simple  ground  of  Christ's 
perfect  sacrifice,  must  infallibly  set  his  heart  and 
conscience  at  rest.  Had  God  taken  up  Esau,  we 
should  not  have  had,  by  any  means,  such  a  blessed 
display  of  grace ;  for  this  reason,  that  he  does  not 
appear  before  us  in  the  unamiable  light  in  which  we 
see  Jacob.  The  more  man  sinks,  the  more  God's 
grace  rises.  As  my  debt  rises,  in  my  estimation, 
from  the  fifty  pence  up  to  the  five  hundred,  so  my 
sense  of  grace  rises  also — my  experience  of  that 
love  which,  when  we  "had  nothing  to  pay,"  could 
"frankly  forgive"  us  all.  (Luke  vii.  42.)  Well 
might  the  apostle  say,  "It  is  a  good  thing  that  the 
heart  be  established  with  grace ;  not  with  meats, 
which  have  not  profited  them  that  have  been  occu- 
pied therein."  (Ileb.  xiii.  9.) 
20 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

*  f  A  ND  Jacob  went  on  his  way,  and  the  angels  of 
-£-L  God  met  him."  Still  God's  grace  follows 
him,  notwithstanding  all.  "  Nothing  changeth  God's 
affection."  Whom  He  loves,  and  how  He  loves,  He 
loves  to  the  end.  His  love»is  like  Himself — "the 
same  yesterday,  to-day,  and  forever."  But  how 
little  effect  "God's  host"  had  upon  Jacob  maybe 
seen  by  his  actings,  as  here  set  before  us.  "And 
Jacob  sent  messengers  before  him  to  Esau  his  broth- 
er, unto  the  land  of  Seir,  the  country  of  Edom." 
He  evidently  feels  uneasy  in  reference  to  Esau,  and 
not  without  reason.  He  had  treated  him  badly,  and 
his  conscience  was  not  at  ease ;  but  instead  of 
casting  himself  unreservedly  upon  God,  he  betakes 
himself  to  his  usual  planning  again,  in  order  to 
avert  Esau's  wrath.  He  tries  to  manage  Esau, 
instead  of  leaning  on  God. 

"And  he  commanded  them,  sa37ing,  'Thus  shall 
ye  speak  unto  my  lord  Esau  :  Thy  servant  Jacob 
saith  thus :  I  have  sojourned  with  Laban,  and  sta3^ed 
there  until  now. ' '  All  this  bespeaks  a  soul  very 
much  off  its  centre  in  God.  "My  lord,"  and  "thy 
servant,"  is  not  like  the  language  of  a  brother,  or  of 
one  in  the  conscious  dignity  of  the  presence  of 
God ;  but  it  was  the  language  of  Jacob,  and  of 
Jacob,  too,  with  a  bad  conscience. 

"And  the  messengers  returned  to  Jacob,  saying, 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  297 

'We  came  to  thy  brother  Esau,  and  also  he  cometh 
to  meet  thee,  and  four  hundred  men  with  him.' 
Then  Jacob  was  greatly  afraid  and  distressed." 
But  what  does  he  first  do  ?  Does  he  at  once  cast 
himself  upon  God  ?  No ;  he  begins  to  manage. 
uHe  divided  the  people  that  was  with  him,  and  the 
flocks  and  herds  and  the  camels,  into  two  bands ; 
and  said,  'If  Esau  come  to  the  one  company  and 
smite  it,  then  the  other  company  which  is  left  shall 
escape.'  "  Jacob's  first  thought  was  always  a  plan, 
and  in  this  we  have  a  true  picture  of  the  poor  human 
heart.  True,  he  turns  to  God  after  he  makes  his 
plan,  and  cries  to  Him  for  deliverance ;  but  no 
sooner  does  he  cease  praying  than  he  resumes  the 
planning.  Now,  praying  and  planning  will  never 
do  together.  If  I  plan,  I  am  leaning  more  or  less 
on  my  plan  ;  but  when  I  pray,  I  should  lean  exclu- 
sively upon  God.  Hence,  the  two  things  are  per- 
fectly incompatible, — they  virtually  destroy  each 
other.  When  my  eye  is  filled  with  my  own  manage- 
ment of  things,  I  am  not  prepared  to  see  God  acting 
for  me  ;  and,  in  that  case,  prayer  is  not  the  utterance 
of  my  need,  but  the  mere  superstitious  performance 
of  something  which  I  think  ought  to  be  done,  or  it 
may  be,  asking  God  to  sanctify  my  plans.  This  will 
never  do.  It  is  not  asking  God  to  sanctify  and  bless 
my  means,  but  it  is  asking  Him  to  do  it  all  Himself.* 
Though  Jacob  asked  God  to  deliver  him  from  his 

*Xo  doubt,  when  faith  allows  God  to  act,  He  will  use  His  own 
agency;  but  this  is  a  totally  different  thing  from  His  owning  and 
blessing  the  plans  and  arrangements  of  unbelief  and  impatience. 
This  distinction  is  not  sufficiently  understood. 


298  GENESTS. 

brother  Esau,  he  evidently  was  not  satisfied  with 
that,  and  therefore  he  tried  to  "appease  him  with  a 
present. ' '  Thus  his  confidence  was  in  the  ' '  present, ' ' 
and  not  entirely  in  God.  "The  heart  is  deceitful 
ubove  all  things,  and  desperately  wicked."  It  is 
often  hard  to  detect  what  is  the  real  ground  of  the 
heart's  confidence.  We  imagine,  or  would  fain  per- 
ctiade  ourselves,  that  we  are  leaning  upon  God, 
when  we  are,  in  reality,  leaning  upon  some  scheme 
of  our  own  devising.  Who,  after  hearkening  to 
Jacob's  prayer,  wherein  he  says,  "Deliver  me,  I 
pray  Thee,  from  the  hand  of  my  brother — from  the 
hand  of  Esau  ;  for  I  fear  him,  lest  he  will  come  and 
smite  me,  and  the  mother  with  the  children,"  could 
imagine  him  saying,  "I  will  appease  him  with  a 
present. ' '  Had  he  forgotten  his  prayer  ?  was  he 
making  a  god  of  his  present  ?  did  he  place  more 
confidence  in  a  few  cattle  than  in  Jehovah,  to  whom 
he  had  just  been  committing  himself?  These  are 
questions  which  naturally  arise  out  of  Jacob's  act- 
ings in  reference  to  Esau,  and  we  can  readily  answer 
them  by  looking  into  the  glass  of  our  own  hearts. 
There  we  learn,  as  well  as  on  the  page  of  Jacob's 
history,  how  much  more  apt  we  are  to  lean  on  our 
own  management  than  on  God  ;  but  it  will  not  do ; 
we  must  be  brought  to  see  the  end  of  our  manage- 
ment, that  it  is  perfect  folly,  and  that  the  true  path 
of  wisdom  is  to  repose  in  full  confidence  upon  God. 
Nor  will  it  do  to  make  our  prayers  part  of  our 
management.  We  often  feel  very  well  satisfied  with 
ourselves  when  we  add  prayer  to  our  arrangement, 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  299 

or  when  we  have  used  all  lawful  means,  and  called 
upon  God  to  bless  them.  When  this  is  the  case, 
our  prayers  are  worth  about  as  much  as  our  plans, 
inasmuch  as  we  are  leaning  upon  them  instead  of 
upon  God.  We  must  be  really  brought  to  the  end 
of  everything  with  which  self  has  aught  to  do ;  for 
until  then,  God  cannot  show  Himself.  But  we  can 
never  get  to  the  end  of  our  plans  until  we  have  been 
brought  to  the  end  of  ourselves.  We  must  see  that 
"all  flesh  is  grass,  and  all  the  goodliness  thereof  is 
as  the  flower  of  the  field."  (Isaiah  xl.  6.) 

Thus  it  is  in  this  interesting  chapter:  when  Jacob 
had  made  all  his  prudent  arrangements,  we  read, 
"And  Jacob  was  left  alone;  and  there  wrestled  a 
man  with  him  until  the  breaking  of  the  day."  This 
is  a  turning-point  in  the  history  of  this  very  remark- 
able man.  To  be  left  alone  with  God  is  the  only 
true  wfay  of  arriving  at  a  just  knowledge  of  our- 
selves and  our  ways.  We  can  never  get  a  true  esti- 
mate of  nature  and  all  its  actings  until  we  have 
weighed  them  in  the  balance  of  the  sanctuaiy,  and 
there  we  ascertain  their  real  worth.  No  matter  what 
we  may  think  about  ourselves,  nor  yet  what  man 
may  think  about  us ;  the  great  question  is,  What 
does  God  think  about  us  ?  and  the  answer  to  this 
question  can  only  be  heard  when  we  are  "left 
alone."  Away  from  the  world;  away  from  self; 
away  from  all  the  thoughts,  reasonings,  imagina- 
tions, and  emotions  of  mere  nature,  and  "alone" 
with  God, — thus,  and  thus  alone,  can  we  get  a  cor- 
rect judgment  about  ourselves. 


300  GENESIS. 

"Jacob  was  left  alone  ;  and  there  wrestled  a  man 
with  him."  Mark,  it  was  not  Jacob  wrestling  with 
a  man,  but  a  man  wrestling  with  Jacob.  This  scene 
is  very  commonly  referred  to  as  an  instance  of 
Jacob's  power  in  prayer.  That  it  is  not  this  is  evi- 
dent from  the  simple  wording  of  the  passage.  My 
wrestling  with  a  man,  and  a  man  wrestling  with  me, 
present  two  totally  different  ideas  to  the  mind.  In 
the  former  case,  I  want  to  gain  some  object  from 
him ;  in  the  latter,  he  wants  to  gain  some  object 
from  me.  Now,  in  Jacob's  case,  the  divine  object 
was  to  bring  him  to  see  what  a  poor,  feeble,  worth- 
less creature  he  was  ;  and  when  Jacob-  so  pertina- 
ciously held  out  against  the  divine  dealing  with  him, 
"He  touched  the  hollow  of  his  thigh  ;  and  the  hollow 
of  Jacob's  thigh  was  out  of  joint  as  He  wrestled  with 
him."  The  sentence  of  death  must  be  written  on 
the  flesh — the  power  of  the  cross  must  be  entered 
into  before  we  can  steadily  and  happily  wralk  with 
God.  We  have  followed  Jacob  so  far,  amid  all  the 
windings  and  workings  of  his  extraordinary  charac- 
ter— we  have  seen  him  planning  and  managing  dur- 
ing his  twenty  years*  sojourn  with  Laban  ;  but  not 
until  he  "was  left  alone"  did  he  get  a  true  idea  of 
what  a  perfectly  helpless  thing  he  was  in  himself. 
Then,  the  seat  of  his  strength  being  touched,  he 
learnt  to  say,  "I  will  not  let  Thee  go." 

"Other  refuge  have  I  none; 
Clings  my  helpless  soul  to  Thee." 

This  was  a  new  era  in  the  history  of  the  supplanting, 
planning  Jacob.     Up  to  this  point  he  had  held  fast 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  301 

by  his  own  ways  and  means ;  but  now  lie  is  brought 
to  say,  "I  will  not  let  Thee  go."  Now,  let  my  reader 
remark,  that  Jacob  did  not  express  himself  thus 
until  "the  hollow  of  his  thigh  was  touched."  This 
simple  fact  is  quite  sufficient  to  settle  the  true  inter- 
pretation of  the  whole  scene.  God  was  wrestling 
with  Jacob  to  bring  him  to  this  point.  We  have 
already  seen  that,  as  to  Jacob's  power  in  prayer,  he 
had  no  sooner  uttered  a  few  words  to  God  than  he 
let  out  the  real  secret  of  his  soul's  dependence,  by 
saying,  "I  will  appease  him  (Esau)  with  a  present." 
Would  he  have  said  this  if  he  had  really  entered  into 
the  meaning  of  prayer,  or  true  dependence  upon 
God  ?  Assuredly  not.  If  he  had  been  looking  to 
God  alone  to  appease  Esau,  could  he  have  said,  "I 
will  appease  him  with  a  present ' '  ?  Impossible.  God 
and  the  creature  must  be  kept  distinct,  and  will  be 
kept  so  in  every  soul  that  knows  much  of  the  sacred 
reality  of  a  life  of  faith. 

But,  alas !  here  is  where  we  fail  (if  one  may  speak 
for  another).  Under  the  plausible  and  apparently 
pious  formula  of  using  means^  we  really  cloke  the 
positive  infidelity  of  our  poor  deceitful  hearts ;  we 
think  we  are  looking  to  God  to  bless  our  means, 
while,  in  reality,  we  are  shutting  Him  out  by  leaning 
on  the  means  instead  of  leaning  on  Him.  Oh!  may 
our  hearts  be  taught  the  evil  of  thus  acting.  May 
we  learn  to  cling  more  simply  to  God  alone,  that  so 
our  history  may  be  more  characterized  by  that  holy 
elevation  above  the  circumstances  through  which  we 
are  passing.  It  is  not,  by  any  means,  an  easy  mat- 


302  GENESIS. 

ter  so  to  get  to  the  end  of  the  creature,  in  every 
shape  and  form,  so  as  to  be  able  to  say,  "I  will  not 
let  Thee  go  except  Thou  bless  me. "  To  say  this  from 
the  heart,  and  to  abide  in  the  power  of  it,  is  the 
secret  of  all  true  strength.  Jacob  said  it  when  the 
hollow  of  his  thigh  was  touched ;  but  not  till  then. 
He  struggled  long,  ere  he  gave  way,  because  his 
confidence  in  the  flesh  was  strong.  But  God  can 
bring  down  to  the  dust  the  stoutest  character.  He 
knows  how  to  touch  the  spring  of  nature's  strength, 
and  write  the  sentence  of  death  thoroughly  upon  it ; 
and  until  this  is  done,  there  can  be  no  real  "power 
with  God  or  man."  We  must  be  "weak"  ere  we 
can  be  "strong."  "The  power  of  Christ"  can  only 
"rest  onus"  in  connection  with  the  knowledge  of 
our  infirmities.  Christ  cannot  put  the  seal  of  His 
approval  upon  nature's  strength,  its  wisdom,  or  its 
glory :  all  these  must  sink  that  He  may  rise.  Nature 
can  never  form,  in  any  one  way,  a  pedestal  on  which 
to  display  the  grace  or  power  of  Christ ;  for  if  it 
could,  then  might  flesh  glory  in  His  presence ;  but 
this,  we  know,  can  never  be. 

And  inasmuch  as  the  display  of  God's  glory  and 
God's  name  or  character  is  connected  with  the  entire 
setting  aside  of  nature,  so,  until  this  latter  is  set 
aside,  the  soul  can  never  enjoy  the  disclosure  of  the 
former.  Hence,  though  Jacob  is  called  to  tell  out 
his  name, — to  own  that  his  name  is  "Jacob,"  or  a 
"supplanter,"  he  yet  receives  no  revelation  of  the 
name  of  Him  who  had  been  wresthjig  with  him,  and 
bringing  him  down  into  the  dust.  He  received  for 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  303 

himself  the  name  of  "Israel,"  or  "prince,*'  which 
was  a  great  step  in  advance ;  but  when  he  says, 
"Tell  me,  I  pray  Thee,  Thy  name,"  he  received  the 
reply,  "Wherefore  is  it  that  thou  dost  ask  after  My 
name?"  The  Lord  refuses  to  tell  His  name,  though 
He  had  elicited  from  Jacob  the  truth  as  to  himself, 
and  He  blesses  him  accordingly.  How  often  is  this 
the  case  in  the  annals  of  God's  family  !  There  is 
the  disclosure  of  self  in  all  its  moral  deformity  ;  but 
we  fail  to  get  hold  practically  of  what  God  is,  though 
He  has  come  so  very  close  to  us,  and  blessed  us, 
too,  in  connection  with  the  discovery  of  ourselves. 
Jacob  received  the  new  name  of  "Israel"  when  the 
hollow  of  his  thigh  had  been  touched ; — he  became 
a  mighty  "prince"  when  he  had  been  brought  to 
know  himself  as  a  weak  man ;  but  still  the  Lord 
had  to  say,  ' '  Wherefore  is  it  that  thou  dost  ask  after 
My  name  ?  "  There  is  no  disclosure  of  the  name  of 
Him  who,  nevertheless,  had  brought  out  the  real 
name  and  condition  of  Jacob. 

From  all  this  we  learn  that  it  is  one  thing  to  be 
blessed  by  the  Lord,  and  quite  another  thing  to  have 
the  revelation  of  His  character,  by  the  Spirit,  to  our 
hearts.  "He  blessed  him  there,"  but  He  did  not 
tell  His  name.  There  is  blessing  in  being  brought, 
in  any  measure,  to  know  ourselves ;  for  therein  we 
are  led  into  a  path  in  which  we  are  able  more  clearly 
to  discern  what  God  is  to  us  in  detail.  Thus  it  was 
with  Jacob.  When  the  hollow  of  his  thigh  was 
touched,  he  found  himself  in  a  condition  in  which  it 
was  either  God  or  nothing.  A  poor  halting  man 


304  GENESIS. 

could  do  little,  it  therefore  behoved  him  to  cling  to 
one  who  was  almighty. 

I  would  remark,  ere  leaving  this  chapter,  that  the 
book  of  Job  is,  in  a  certain  sense,  a  detailed  com- 
mentary on  this  scene  in  Jacob's  history.  Through- 
out the  first  thirty-one  chapters,  Job  grapples  with 
his  friends,  and  maintains  his  point  against  all  their 
arguments ;  but  in  chapter  xxxii,  God,  by  the  in- 
strumentality of  Elihu,  begins  to  wrestle  with  him ; 
and  in  chapter  xxxviii,  He  comes  down  upon  him 
directly  with  all  the  majesty  of  His  power,  over- 
whelms him  by  the  display  of  His  greatness  and 
glory,  and  elicits  from  him  the  well-known  words, 
"I  have  heard  of  Thee  by  the  hearing  of  the  ear; 
but  now  mine  e}Te  seeth  Thee.  "Wherefore  I  abhor 
myself,  and  repent  in  dust  and  ashes."  (Chap.  xlii. 
5,  6.)  This  was  really  touching  the  hollow  of  his 
thigh.  And  mark  the  expression,  "Mine  eye  seeth 
Thee."  He  does  not  say,  "I  see  myself"  merely; 
no ;  but  "Thee."  Nothing  but  a  view  of  what  God 
is  can  really  lead  to  repentance  and  self-loathing. 
Thus  it  will  be  with  the  people  of  Israel,  whose  his- 
tory is  very  analagous  with  that  of  Job.  When  they 
shall  look  upon  Him  whom  they  have  pierced,  they 
will  mourn,  and  then  there  will  be  full  restoration 
and  blessing.  Their  latter  end,  like  Job's,  will  be 
better  than  their  beginning.  They  will  learn  the  full 
meaning  of  that  word,  "O  Israel,  thou  hast  destroyed 
thyself;  but  in  Me  is  thine  help."  (Hosca  xiii.  9.) 


CHAPTERS  XXXIII  &  XXXIV. 

WE  may  here  see  how  groundless  were  all  Jacob's 
fears,  and  how  useless  all  his  plans.  Not- 
withstanding the  wrestling,  the  touching  the  hollow 
of  the  thigh,  and  the  halting,  we  find  Jacob  still 
planning. — "And  Jacob  lifted  up  his  eyes  and  looked, 
and  behold  Esau  came,  and  with  him  four  hundred 
men.  And  he  divided  the  children  unto  Leah,  and 
unto  Rachel,  and  unto  the  two  handmaids.  And  he 
put  the  handmaids  and  their  children  foremost,  and 
Leah  and  her  children  after,  and  Rachel  and  Joseph 
hindermost."  This  arrangement  proved  the  contin- 
uance of  his  fears.  He  still  anticipated  vengeance 
from  the  hand  of  Esau,  and  he  exposed  those  about 
whom  he  cared  least  to  the  first  stroke  of  that  venge- 
ance. How  wondrous  are  the  depths  of  the  human 
heart !  How  slow  it  is  to  trust  God  !  Had  Jacob 
been  really  leaning  upon  God,  he  never  could  have 
anticipated  destruction  for  himself  and  his  family ; 
but,  alas  !  the  heart  knows  something  of  the  diffi- 
culty of  simply  reposing,  in  calm  confidence,  upon 
an  ever-present,  all-powerful,  and  infinitely-gracious 
God. 

But  mark,  now,  the  thorough  vanity  of  the  heart's 
anxiety.  "And  Esau  ran  to  meet  him,  and  em- 
braced him,  and  fell  on  his  neck  and  kissed  him ; 
and  they  wept."  The  present  was  quite  unneces- 
sary— the  plan,  useless.  God  "appeased"  Esau,  as 


306  GENESIS. 

He  had  already  appeased  Laban.  Thus  it  is  He  ever 
delights  to  rebuke*  our  poor,  coward,  unbelieving 
hearts,  and  put  to  flight  all  our  fears.  Instead  of 
the  dreaded  sword  of  Esau,  Jacob  meets  his  embrace 
and  kiss  ; — instead  of  strife  and  conflict,  they  mingle 
their  tears.  Such  are  God's  wa}^s.  Who  would  not 
trust  Him  ? — who  would  not  honor  Him  with  the 
heart's  fullest  confidence  ?  Why  is  it  that,  notwith- 
standing all  the  sweet  evidences  of  His  faithfulness 
to  those  who  put  their  trust  in  Him,  we  are  so  ready, 
on  every  fresh  occasion,  to  doubt  and  hesitate?  The 
answer  is  simple, — We  are  not  sufficiently  acquainted 
with  God.  "  Acquaint  now  tlryself  with  Him,  and 
be  at  peace."  (Job  xxii.  21.)  This  is  true,  whether 
in  reference  to  the  unconverted  sinner  or  to  the  child 
of  God.  The  true  knowledge  of  God — real  acquaint- 
ance with  Him,  is  life  and  peace.  "This  is  life 
eternal,  that  they  might  know  Thee,  the  only  true 
God,  and  Jesus  Christ  whom  Thou  hast  sent."  (John 
xvii.  3.)  The  more  intimate  our  acquaintance  with 
God,  the  more  solid  will  be  our  peace,  and  the  more 
will  our  souls  be  lifted  above  every  creature  depend- 
ence. "God  is  a  rock,"  and  we  only  need  to  lean 
our  whole  weight  upon  Him,  to  know  how  ready 
and  how  able  He  is  to  sustain  us. 

After  all  this  manifestation  of  God's  goodness,  we 
find  Jacob  settling  down  in  Succoth,  and,  contrary 
to  the  spirit  and  principles  of  a  pilgrim  life,  building 
a  house,  as  if  it  were  his  home.  Now,  Succoth  was 
evidently  not  his  divinely-appointed  destination. 
The  Lord  had  not  said  to  him,  I  am  the  God  of 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  307 

Succoth;  no;  but,  "I  am  the  God  of  Bethel." 
Bethel,  therefore,  and  not  Succoth,  should  have 
been  Jacob's  grand  object.  But,  alas  !  the  heart 
is  always  prone  to  rest  satisfied  with  a  position  and 
portion  short  of  what  God  would  graciously  assign. 

Jacob  then  moves  on  to  Shechem,  and  purchases 
ground,  still  falling  short  of  the  divine  mark,  and 
the  name  by  which  he  calls  his  altar  is  indicative  of 
the  moral  condition  of  his  soul.  He  calls  it  ';E1- 
elohe-Israel,"  or,  "God,  the  God  of  Israel."  This 
was  taking  a  very  contracted  view  of  God.  True, 
it  is  our  privilege  to  know  God  as  our  God ;  but  it 
is  a  higher  thing  to  know  Him  as  the  God  of  His 
own  house,  and  to  view  ourselves  as  part  of  that 
house.  It  is  the  believer's  privilege  to  know  Christ 
as  his  Head  ;  but  it  is  a  higher  thing  to  know  Him 
as  the  Head  of  His  body  the  Church,  and  to  know 
ourselves  as  members  of  that  body. 

We  shall  see,  when  we  come  to  chapter  xxxv,  that 
Jacob  is  led  to  take  a  higher  and  a  wider  view  of 
God ;  but  at  Shechem  he  was  manifestly  on  low 
ground,  and  he  was  made  to  smart  for  it,  as  is 
always  the  case  when  we  stop  short  of  God's  own 
ground.  The  two  tribes  and  a  half  took  up  their 
position  on  this  side  of  Jordan,  and  they  were  the 
first  to  fall  into  the  enemy's  hand.  So  it  was  with 
Jacob.  We  see,  in  chapter  xxxiv,  the  bitter  fruits 
of  his  sojourn  at  Shechem.  There  is  a  blot  cast 
upon  his  family,  which  Simeon  and  Levi  attempt  to 
wipe  out,  in  the  mere  energy  and  violence  of  nature, 
which  only  led  to  still  deeper  sorrow;  and  that, 


308  GENESIS. 

too,  which  touched  Jacob  still  more  keenly  than  the 
insult  offered  to  his  daughter. — "And  Jacob  said  to 
Simeon  and  Levi,  'Ye  have  troubled  me,  to  make 
me  to  stink  among  the  inhabitants  of  the  land, 
among  the  Canaanites  and  the  Perizzites ;  and  I 
being  few  in  number,  they  shall  gather  themselves 
together  against  me,  and  slay  me;  and  /  shall  be 
destroyed,  /  and  my  house."  Thus,  it  was  the 
consequences  in  reference  to  himself  that  affected 
Jacob  most.  He  seems  to  have  walked  in  constant 
apprehension  of  danger  to  himself  or  his  family, 
and  in  the  manifestation  of  an  anxious,  a  cautious, 
timid,  calculating  spirit,  utterly  incompatible  with  a 
life  of  genuine  faith  in  God. 

It  is  not  that  Jacob  was  not,  in  the  main,  a  man 
of  faith  ;  he  assuredly  was,  and  as  such,  gets  a  place 
amongst  the  "cloud  of  witnesses"  in  Hebrews  xi: 
but  then  he  exhibited  sad  failure  from  not  walking 
in  the  habitual  exercise  of  that  divine  principle. 
Could  faith  have  led  him  to  say,  "I  shall  be  de- 
stroyed, I  and  my  house"?  Surely  not.  God's 
promise  in  chapter  xxviii.  14,  15,  should  have  ban- 
ished every  fear  from  his  poor  timid  spirit. — "I  will 

keep  thee I  will  not  leave  thee."     This 

should  have  tranquilized  his  heart.  But  the  fact  is, 
his  mind  was  more  occupied  with  his  danger  among 
the  Shechemites  than  with  his  security  in  the  hand 
of  God.  He  ought  to  have  known  that  not  a  hair  of 
his  head  could  be  touched,  and  therefore,  instead  of 
looking  at  Simeon  and  Levi,  or  the  consequences  of 
their  rash  acting,  he  should  have  judged  himself  for 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  309 

being  in  such  a  position  at  all.  If  he  had  not  settled 
at  Shechem,  Dinah  would  not  have  been  dishonored, 
and  the  violence  of  his  sons  would  not  have  been 
exhibited.  We  constantly  see  •  Christians  getting 
into  deep  sorrow  and  trouble  through  their  own  un- 
faithfulness;  and  then,  instead  of  judging  them- 
selves, they  begin  to  look  at  circumstances,  and  to 
cast  upon  them  the  blame. 

How  often  do  we  see  Christian  parents,  for  in- 
stance, in  keen  anguish  of  soul  about  the  wildness, 
unsubduedness,  and  worldliness  of  their  children ; 
and,  all  the  while,  they  have  mainly  to  blame  them- 
selves for  not  walking  faithfully  before  God  in  refer- 
ence to  their- family.  Thus  was  it  with  Jacob.  He 
was  on  low  moral  ground  at  Shechem  ;  and,  inas- 
much as  he  lacked  that  refined  sensibility  which 
would  have  led  him  to  detect  the  low  ground,  God, 
in  very  faithfulness,  used  his  circumstances  to 
chastise  him.  "God  is  not  mocked  ;  for  whatsoever 
a  man  soweth,  that  shall  he  also  reap. ' '  This  is  a 
principle  flowing  out  of  God's  moral  government, — 
a  principle,  from  the  application  of  which  none  can 
possibly  escape ;  and  it  is  a  positive  mercy  to  the 
children  of  God  that  they  are  obliged  to  reap  the 
fruits  of  their  errors.  It  is  a  mercy  to  be  taught, 
in  any  way,  the  bitterness  of  departing  from,  or 
stopping  short  of,  the  living  God.  We  must  learn 
that  this  is  not  our  rest;  for,  blessed  be  God,  He 
would  not  give  us  a  polluted  rest.  He  would  ever 
have  us  resting  in  and  ivith  Himself.  Such  is  His 
perfect  grace ;  and  when  our  hearts  wander  or  fall 


310  GENESIS. 

short,  His  word  is,  "If  thou  wilt  return,  return 
unto  Me."  False  humility,  which  is  simply  the  fruit 
of  unbelief,  would  lead  the  wanderer  or  backslider 
to  take  lower  ground,  not  knowing  the  principle  or 
measure  of  God's  restoration.  The  prodigal  would 
seek  to  be  made  a  servant,  not  knowing  that,  so  far 
as  he  was  concerned,  he  had  no  more  title  to  the 
place  of  a  servant  than  to  that  of  a  son ;  and, 
moreover,  that  it  would  be  utterly  unworthy  of  the 
father's  character  to  put  him  in  such  a  position. 
We  must  come  to  God  on  a  principle  and  in  a 
manner  worthy  of  Himself,  or  not  at  all. 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

ND  God  said  unto  Jacob,  'Arise,  go  up  to 
Bethel  and  dwell  there.'  "  This  confirms  the 
principle  on  which  we  have  been  dwelling.  When 
there  is  failure  or  declension,  the  Lord  calls  the  soul 
back  to  Himself.  "Remember,  therefore,  from 
whence  thou  art  fatten;  and  repent,  and  do  the  first 
works."  (Rev.  ii.  5.)  This  is  the  divine  principle 
of  restoration.  The  soul  must  be  recalled  to  the 
very  highest  point, — it  must  be  brought  back  to  the 
divine  standard.  The  Lord  does  not  say,  Remem- 
ber where  you  are;  no;  but,  "Remember  the  lofty 
position  from  whence  you  have  fallen."  Thus  only 
can  one  learn  how  far  he  has  declined,  and  how  he 
is  to  retrace  his  steps. 

Now,  it  is  when  thus  recalled  to  God's  high  and 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  311 

holy  standard,  that  one  is  really  led  to  see  the  sad 
evil  of  one's  fallen  condition.  What  a  fearful 
amount  of  moral  evil  had  gathered  round  Jacob's 
family,  unjudged  by  him,  until  his  soul  was  roused 
by  the  call  to  "go  up  to  Bethel."  Shechem  was 
not  the  place  in  which  to  detect  all  this  evil.  The 
atmosphere  of  that  place  was  too  much  impregnated 
with  impure  elements  to  admit  of  the  soul's  discern- 
ing, with  any  degree  of  clearness  and  precision,  the 
true  character  of  evil.  But  the  moment  the  call  to 
Bethel  fell  on  Jacob's  ear,  "then  Jacob  said  unto 
his  household,  and  to  all  that  ^Yere  with  him,  'Put 
away  the  strange  gods  that  are  among  you,  and  be 
clean  and  change  your  garments,  and  let  us  arise 
and  go  up  to  Bethel ;  and  I  will  make  there  an  altar 
unto  God,  who  answered  me  in  the  day  of  my  dis- 
tress, and  was  with  me  in  the  way  which  I  went.'  " 
The  very  mention  of  "-the  house  of  God"  struck  a 
chord  in  the  soul  of  the  patriarch ;  it  carried  him, 
in  the  twinkling  of  an  e}re,  over  the  history  of  twenty 
eventful  3'ears.  It  was  at  Bethel  he  had  learnt  what 
God  was,  and  not  at  Shechem ;  hence  he  must  get 
back  to  Bethel  again,  and  erect  an  altar  upon  a 
totally  different  base,  and  under  a  totally  different 
name,  from  his  altar  at  Shechem.  This  latter  was 
connected  with  a  mass  of  uncleanness  and  idolatiy. 
Jacob  could  speak  of  "  El-elohe-Israel "  while  sur- 
rounded by  a  quantity  of  things  utterly  incompatible 
with  the  holiness  of  the  house  of  God.  It  is  im- 
portant to  be  clear  in  reference  to  this  point.  No- 
thing can  keep  the  soul  in  a  path  of  consistent, 
21 


312  GENESIS. 

intelligent  separation  from  evil  save  the  sense  of 
what  "the  house  of  God"  is,  and  what  becomes 
that  house.  If  I  merely  look  at  God  in  reference  to 
nrvself,  I  shall  not  have  a  clear,  full,  divine  sense  of 
all  that  flows  out  of  a  due  recognition  of  God's 
relation  to  His  house.  Some  there  are  who  deem  it 
a  matter  of  no  importance  how  they  are  mixed  up 
with  impure  materials  in  the  worship  of  God,  pro- 
vided they  themselves  are  true  and  upright  in  heart. 
In  other  words,  they  think  they  can  worship  God  at 
Shechem,  and  that  an  altar  named  "  El-elohe-Israel " 
is  just  as  elevated-— just  as  much  according  to  God 
— as  an  altar  named  "El-Bethel."  This  is  evidently 
a  mistake.  The  spiritually-minded  reader  will  at 
once  detect  the  vast  moral  difference  between  Jacob's 
condition  at  Shechem,  and  his  condition  at  Bethel ; 
and  the  same  difference  is  observable  between  the 
two  altars.  Our  ideas  in  reference  to  the  worship 
of  God  must,  of  necessity,  be  affected  by  our  spir- 
itual condition  ;  and  the  worship  which  we  present 
will  be  low  and  contracted,  or  elevated  and  compre- 
hensive, just  in  proportion  as  we  enter  into  the 
apprehension  of  Plis  character  and  relationship. 

Now,  the  name  of  our  altar  and  the  character  of 
our  worship  express  the  same  idea.  El-Bethel  wor- 
ship is  higher  than  El-elohe-Israel  worship,  for  this 
simple  reason,  that  it  conveys  a  higher  idea  of  God. 
It  gives  me  a  more  elevated  thought  of  God  to  speak 
of  Him  as  the  God  of  His  house  than  as  the  God  of 
a  solitary  individual.  True,  there  is  beautiful  grace 
expressed  in  the  title,  "God,  the  God  of  Israel," 


CHAPTERS    XXVII-XXXV.  313 

and  the  soul  must  ever  feel  happy  in  looking  at  the 
character  of  God  as  graciously  connecting  Himself 
with  every  separate  stone  of  His  house  and  every 
separate  member  of  the  body.  Each  stone  in  the 
building  of  God  is  a  "lively  stone,"  as  connected 
with  the  " living  stone,"  having  communion  with  the 
"living  God,"  by  the  power  of  "the  Spirit  of  life." 
But  while  all  this  is  blessedly  true,  God  is  the  God 
of  His  house ;  and  when  we  are  enabled,  by  an  en- 
larged spiritual  intelligence,  to  view  Him  as  such, 
we  enjoy  a  higher  character  of  worship  than  that 
which  flows  from  merely  apprehending  what  He  is 
to  ourselves  individually. 

But  there  is  another  thing  to  be  remarked  in 
Jacob's  recall  to  Bethel.  He  is  told  to  make  an 
altar  "unto  God,  that  appeared  unto  thee  when  thou 
fleddest  from  the  face  of  Esau  thy  brother."  He  is 
thus  reminded  of  "the  day  of  his  distress."  It  is 
often  well  to  have  our  minds  led  in  this  way  to  the 
point  in  our  history  in  which  we  found  ourselves 
brought  down  to  the  lowest  step  of  the  ladder. 
Thus  Saul  is  brought  back  to  the  time  when  he  was 
"little  in  his  own  eyes."  This  is  the  true  starting- 
point  with  all  of  us.  "When  thou  wast  little  in 
thine  own  eyes,"  is  a  point  of  which  we  often  need 
to  be  reminded.  It  is  then  that  the  heart  really 
leans  on  God.  Afterwards  we  begin  to  fancy  our- 
selves to  be  something,  and  the  Lord  is  obliged  to 
teach  us  afresh  our  own  nothingness.  When  first 
one  enters  upon  a  path  of  service  or  testimony,  what 
a  sense  there  is  of  personal  weakness  and  incapacity ! 


314  GENESIS. 

and,  as  a  consequence,  what  leaning  upon  God! 
what  earnest,  fervent  appeals  to  Him  for  help  and 
strength !  Afterwards  we  begin  to  think  that,  from 
being  so  long  at  the  work,  we  can  get  on  by  our- 
selves,— at  least,  there  is  not  the  same  sense  of 
weakness,  or  the  same  simple  dependence  upon 
God ;  and  then  our  ministry  becomes  a  poor,  mea- 
gre, flippant,  wordy  thing,  without  unction  or  power 
— a  thing  flowing,  not  from  the  exhaustless  tide  of 
the  Spirit,  but  from  our  own  wretched  minds. 

From  ver.  9-15,  God  renews  His  promise  to  Jacob, 
and  confirms  the  new  name  of  "prince,"  instead  of 
"  supplanter ; "  and  Jacob  again  calls  the  name  of 
the  place  "Bethel."  At  verse  18  we  have  an  inter- 
esting example  of  the  difference  between  the  judg- 
ment of  faith  and  the  judgment  of  nature.  The 
latter  looks  at  things  through  the  hazy  mist  with 
which  it  is  surrounded  ;  the  former  looks  at  them  in 
the  light  of  the  presence  and  counsels  of  God. — 
"And  it  came  to  pass,  as  her  soul  was  in  departing, 
(for  she  died,)  that  she  called  his  name  Ben-oni ; 
but  his  father  called  him  Benjamin."  Nature  called 
him  "The  son  of  my  sorrow ;  "  but  faith  called  him 
"The  son  of  the  right  hand."  Thus  is  it  ever. 
The  difference  between  the  thoughts  of  nature  and 
those  of  faith  must  ever  be  wide  indeed ;  and  we 
should  earnestly  desire  that  our  souls  should  be 
governed  only  by  the  latter,  and  not  by  the  former. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI 

Furnishes  a  catalogue  of  Esau's  sons,  with  their 
various  titles  and  localities.  We  shall  not  dwell  on 
this,  but  pass  on  to  one  of  the  most  fruitful  and 
interesting  sections  in  the  entire  canon  of  inspira- 
tion, viz., — 

CHAPTERS   XXXVII— L, 

On  which  we  shall  dwell  more  particularly.  There 
is  not  in  Scripture  a  more  perfect  and  beautiful  type 
of  Christ  than  Joseph.  Whether  we  view  Christ  as 
the  object  of  the  Father's  love,  the  object  of  the 
envy  of  "His  own," — in  His  humiliation,  sufferings, 
death,  exaltation  and  glory — in  all,  we  have  Him 
strikingly  typified  by  Joseph. 

In  chapter  xxxvii  we  have  Joseph's  dreams,  the 
statement  of  which  draws  out  the  enmity  of  his 
brethren.  He  was  the  object  of  his  father's  love, 
and  the  subject  of  very  high  destinies,  and,  inas- 
much as  the  hearts  of  his  brethren  were  not  in  com- 
munion with  these  things,  they  hated  him.  They 
had  no  fellowship  in  the  father's  love,  and  they 
would  not  yield  to  the  thought  of  Joseph's  exalta- 
tion. In  all  this  they  represent  the  Jews  in  Christ's 
day.  "He  came  to  His  own,  and  His  own  received 
Him  not."  He  had  "no  form  nor  comeliness"  in 
their  eyes.  They  would  neither  own  Him  as  the 
Son  of  God,  nor  King  of  Israel.  Their  eyes  were 


316  GENESIS. 

not  open  to  behold  "His  glory,  the  glory  as  of  the 
only  begotten  of  the  Father,  full  of  grace  and  truth." 
They  would  not  have  Him, — yea,  they  hated  Him. 

Now,  in  Joseph's  case,  we  see  that  he  in  no  wise 
relaxed  his  testimony  in  consequence  of  his  breth- 
ren's refusal  of  his  first  dream. — "And  Joseph 
dreamed  a  dream,  and  he  told  it  to  his  brethren ; 

and  they  hated  him  yet  the  more And 

he  dreamed  yet  another  dream,  and  told  it  to  his 
brethren."  This  was  simple  testimony  founded  up- 
on divine  revelation ;  but  it  was  testimony  which 
brought  Joseph  down  to  the  pit.  Had  he  kept  back 
his  testimony,  or  taken  off  aught  of  its  edge  and 
power,  he  might  have  spared  himself;  but  no;  he 
told  them  the  truth,  and  therefore  they  hated  him. 

Thus  was  it  with  Joseph's  great  Antitype.  He 
bore  witness  to  the  truth — He  witnessed  a  good 
confession — He  kept  back  nothing — He  could  only 
speak  the  truth  because  He  was  the  truth,  and  His 
testimony  to  the  truth  was  answered,  on  man's  part, 
by  the  cross,  the  vinegar,  the  soldier's  spear.  The 
testimony  of  Christ,  too,  was  connected  with  the 
deepest,  fullest,  richest  grace.  He  not  only  came 
as  "the  truth,"  but  also  as  the  perfect  expression 
of  all  the  love  of  the  Father's  heart:  "grace  and 
truth  came  by  Jesns  Christ."  He  was  the  full  dis- 
closure to  man  of  what  God  was ;  hence  man  was 
left  entirely  without  excuse.  He  came  and  showed 
God  to  man,  and  man  hated  God  with  a  perfect 
hatred.  The  fullest  exhibition  of  divine  love  was 
answered  by  the  fullest  exhibition  of  human  hatred. 


CHAPTERS    XXXVII-L.  317 

This  is  seen  in  the  cross ;  and  we  have  it  touchingly 
foreshadowed  at  the  pit  into  which  Joseph  was  cast 
by  his  brethren. 

"And  when  they  saw  him  afar  off,  even  before  he 
came  near  unto  them,  they  conspired  against  him  to 
slay  him.  And  they  said  one  to  another,  '  Behold, 
this  dreamer  cometh ;  come  now,  therefore,  and  let 
us  slay  him,  and  cast  him  into  some  pit ;  and  we 
will  say,  some  evil  beast  hath  devoured  him ;  and 
we  shall  see  what  will  become  of  his  dreams.'  ' 
These  words  forcibly  remind  us  of  the  parable  in 
Matthew  xxi, — "But  last  of  all  he  sent  unto  them 
his  son,  saying,  'They  will  reverence  my  son.'  But 
when  the  husbandmen  saw  the  son,  they  said  among 
themselves,  'This  is  the  heir;  come,  let  us  kill  him, 
and  let  us  seize  on  his  inheritance.'  And  they 
caught  him,  and  cast  him  out  of  the  vineyard,  and 
slew  him."  God  sent  His  Son  into  the  world  with 
this  thought,  "They  will  reverence  My  Son  ;"  but, 
alas  !  man's  heart  had  no  reverence  for  the  "well- 
beloved  ' '  of  the  Father ; — they  cast  Him  out.  Earth 
and  heaven  were  at  issue  in  reference  to  Christ,  and 
they  are  at  issue  still.  Man  crucified  Him ;  but 
God  raised  Him  from  the  dead.  Man  placed  Him 
on  a  cross  between  two  thieves ;  God  set  Him  at 
His  own  right  hand  in  the  heavens.  Man  gave  Him 
the  very  lowest  place  on  earth ;  God  gave  Him  the 
very  highest  place  in  heaven,  in  brightest  majest}^. 

All  this  is  shown  out  in  Joseph's  history.  '  'Joseph 
is  a  fruitful  bough,  even  a  fruitful  bough  by  a  well, 
whose  branches  run  over  the  wall.  The  archers 


318  GENESIS. 

have  sorely  grieved  him,  and  shot  at  him,  and  hated 
him  ;  but  his  bow  abode  in  strength,  and  the  arms 
of  his  hands  were  made  strong  by  the  hands  of  the 
mighty  God  of  Jacob ;  (from  thence  is  the  Shep- 
herd, the  Stone  of  Israel;)  even  by  the  God  of  thy 
father,  who  shall  help  thee ;  and  by  the  Almighty, 
who  shall  bless  thee  with  blessings  of  heaven  above, 
blessings  of  the  deep  that  lieth  under,  blessings  of 
the  breasts  and  of  the  womb :  the  blessings  of  thy 
father  have  prevailed  above  the  blessings  of  my  pro- 
genitors, unto  the  utmost  bound  of  the  everlasting 
hills ;  they  shall  be  upon  the  head  of  Joseph,  and 
on  the  crown  of  the  head  of  him  that  was  separate 
from  his  brethren."  (Gen.  xlix.  22-26.) 

These  verses  beautifully  exhibit  to  our  view  "the 
sufferings  of  Christ,  and  the  glory  that  should  fol- 
low." "The  archers"  have  done  their  work ;  but 
God  was  stronger  than  the}r.  The  true  Joseph  has 
been  shot  at  and  grievously  wounded  in  the  house 
of  his  friends;  but  "the  arms  of  his  hands  have 
been  made  strong"  in  the  power  of  resurrection, 
and  faith  now  knows  Him  as  the  basis  of  all  God's 
purposes  of  blessing  and  glory  in  reference  to  the 
Church,  Israel,  and  the  whole  creation.  When  we 
look  at  Joseph  in  the  pit  and  in  the  prison,  and  look 
at  him  afterwards  as  ruler  over  all  the  land  of  Eg}Tpt, 
we  see  the  difference  between  the  thoughts  of  God 
and  the  thoughts  of  men ;  and  so  when  we  look  at 
the  cross,  and  at  "the  throne  of  the  Majesty  in  the 
heavens,"  we  see  the  same  thing. 

Nothing  ever  brought  out  the  real  state  of  man's 


CHAPTERS    XXXVII-L.  319 

heart  toward  God  but  the  coming  of  Christ.  "If  I 
had  not  come  and  spoken  unto  them,  they  had  not 
had  sin."  (John  xv.  22.)  It  is  not  that  they  would 
not  have  been  sinners.  No  ;  but  "they  had  not  had 
sin."  So  He  says,  in  another  place,  "If  ye  were 
blind,  ye  should  have  no  sin."  (John  ix.  41.)  God 
came  near  to  man  in  the  Person  of  His  Son,  and  man 
was  able  to  say,  "This  is  the  heir ;  "  but  yet  he  said, 
"Come,  let  us  kill  Him."  Hence,  "they  have  no 
cloak  for  their  sin."  Those  who  say  they  see,  have 
no  excuse.  Confessed  blindness  is  not  at  all  the 
difficulty,  but  professed  siglit.  This  is  a  truly-solemn 
principle  for  a  professing  age  like  the  present.  The 
permanence  of  sin  is  connected  wity  the  mere  pro- 
fession to  see.  A  man  who  is  blind,  and  knows  it, 
can  have  his  eyes  opened  ;  but  what  can  be  done  for 
one  who  thinks  he  sees,  when  he  really  does  not  ? 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII 

Presents  one  of  those  remarkable  circumstances  in 
which  divine  grace  is  seen  gloriously  triumphing 
over  man's  sin.  "It  is  evident  that  our  Lord  sprang 
out  of  Juda."  (Heb.  vii.  14.).  But  how?  "Judas 
begat  Phares  and  Zara  of  Thamar."  (Matt.  i.  3.) 
This  is  peculiarly  striking.  God,  in  His  great  grace, 
rising  above  the  sin  and  folly  of  man,  in  order  to 
bring  about  His  own  purposes  of  love  and  mercy. 
Thus,  a  little  further  on  in  Matthew,  we  read, 


320  GENESIS. 

"David  the  king  begat  Solomon,  of  her  that  had 
been  the  wife  of  Unas."  It  is  worthy  of  God  thus 
to  act.  The  Spirit  of  God  is  conducting  us  along 
the  line  through  which,  according  to  the  flesh,  Christ 
came ;  and,  in  doing  so,  He  gives  us,  as  links  in  the 
genealogical  chain,  Tamar  and  Bathsheba  !  How 
evident  it  is  that  there  is  nothing  of  man  in  this  ! 
How  plain  it  is  that  when  we  reach  the  close  of  the 
first  chapter  of  Matthew,  it  is  "God  manifest  in  the 
flesh"  we  find,  and  that,  too,  from  the  pen  of  the 
Holy  Ghost  !  Man  could  never  have  devised  such 
a  genealogy.  It  is  entirely  divine  ;  and  no  spiritual 
person  can  read  it  without  seeing  in  it  a  blessed 
exhibition  of  divine  grace,  in  the  first  place,  and  of 
the  divine  inspiration  of  Matthew's  gospel,  in  the 
second  place,  at  least  of  his  account  of  Christ's 
genealogy  according  to  the  flesh.  I  believe  a  com- 
parison of  2  Samuel  xi  and  Genesis  xxxviii  with 
Matthew  i  will  furnish  the  thoughtful  Christian  with 
matter  for  a  very  sweet  and  edifying  meditation. 


CHAPTERS   XXXIX— XLV. 

IN  perusing  these  interesting  sections  of  inspira- 
tion, we  perceive  a  remarkable  chain  of  provi- 
dential actings,  all  tending  to  one  grand  point, 
namely,  the  exaltation  of  the  man  wlio  had  been  in 
the  pit;  and,  at  the  same  time,  bringing  out,  by 
the  way,  a  number  of  subordinate  objects.  "The 


CHAPTERS    XXXVII-L.  321 

thoughts  of  many  hearts ' '  were  to  be  "  revealed  ; ' ' 
but  Joseph  was  to  be  exalted.  "He  called  for  a 
famine  upon  the  land :  He  brake  the  whole  staff  of 
bread.  He  sent  a  man  before  them,  even  Joseph, 
who  was  sold  for  a  servant ;  whose  feet  they  hurt 
with  fetters ;  he  was  laid  in  iron ;  until  the  time 
that  His  word  came ;  the  word  of  the  Lord  tried 
him.  The  king  sent  and  loosed  him  ;  even  the  ruler 
of  the  people,  and  let  him  go  free.  He  made  him 
lord  of  his  house,  and  ruler  of  all  his  substance  ;  to 
bind  his  princes  at  his  pleasure,  and  teach  his  sena- 
tors wisdom."  (Psalm  cv.  16-22.) 

It  is  well  to  see  that  the  leading  object  was  to 
exalt  the  one  whom  men  had  rejected,  and  then  to 
produce  in  those  same  men  a  sense  of  their  sin  in 
rejecting.  And  how  admirably  all  this  is  effected  ! 
The  most  trivial  and  the  most  important,  the  most 
likely  and  the  most  unlikely,  circumstances  are 
made  to  minister  to  the  development  of  God's  pur- 
poses. In  chapter  xxxix,  Satan  uses  Potiphar's 
wife ;  and  in  chapter  xl,  he  uses  Pharaoh's  chief 
butler.  The  former  he  used  to  put  Joseph  into  the 
dungeon  ;  and  the  latter  he  used  to  keep  him  there, 
through  his  ungrateful  negligence;  but  all  in  vain. 
God  was  behind  the  scenes.  His  finger  was  guiding 
all  the  springs  of  the  vast  machine  of  circumstances  ; 
and  when  the  due  time  was  come,  He  brought  forth 
the  man  of  His  purpose,  and  set  his  feet  in  a  large 
room.  Now  this  is  ever  God's  prerogative.  He  is 
above  all,  and  can  use  all  for  the  accomplishment 
of  His  grand  and  unsearchable  designs.  It  is  sweet 


322  GENESIS. 

to  be  able  thus  to  trace  our  Father's  hand  and 
counsel  in  everything  ; — sweet  to  know  that  all  sorts 
of  agents  are  at  His  sovereign  disposal :  angels,  men 
and  devils — all  are  under  His  omnipotent  hand,  and 
all  are  made  to  carry  out  His  purposes.  % 

In  the  scripture  now  before  us,  all  this  is  seen  in 
a  most  remarkable  manner.  God  visits  the  domes- 
tic circle  of  a  heathen  captain,  the  household  of  a 
heathen  king, — yea,  and  his  bedside,  and  makes  the 
very  visions  of  his  head  upon  his  bed  contribute  to 
the  development  of  His  counsels.  Nor  is  it  merely 
individuals  and  their  circumstances  that  we  see  thus 
taken  up  and  used  for  the  furtherance  of  God's 
ends  ;  but  Egypt  and  all  the  surrounding  countries 
are  brought  into  the  scene  ;  in  short,  the  whole  earth 
was  prepared  by  the  hand  of  God  to  be  a  theatre  on 
which  to  display  the  glory  and  greatness  of  the  one 
4 '  who  was  separate  from  his  brethren."  Such  are 
God's  ways  ;  and  it  is  one  of  the  happiest  and  most 
elevating  exercises  for  the  soul  of  a  saint  to  trace 
thus  the  admirable  actings  of  his  heavenly  Father. 
How  forcibly  is  God's  providence  brought  out  in 
this  profoundly  interesting  history  of  Joseph !  Look, 
for  a  moment,  into  the  dungeon  of  the  captain  of  the 
guard.  See  there  a  man  "laid  in  iron,"  charged 
with  a  most  abominable  crime,  the  outcast  and  off- 
scouring  of  society ;  and  yet  see  him,  almost  in  a 
moment,  raised  to  the  very  highest  eminence ;  and 
who  can  deny  that  God  is  in  it  all  ? 

"And  Pharaoh  said  unto  Joseph,  'Forasmuch  as 
God  hath  showed  thee  all  this,  there  is  none  so  dis- 


CHAPTERS    XXXVII-L.  323 

creet  and  wise  as  thou  art ;  thou  shalt  be  over  my 
house,  and  according  unto  thy  word  shall  all  my 
people  be  ruled  ;  only  in  the  throne  will  I  be  greater 
than  thou.'  And  Pharaoh  said  unto  Joseph,  'See, 
I  have  set  thee  over  all  the  land  of  Eg}~pt.'  And 
Pharaoh  took  off  his  ring  from  his  hand,  and  put  it 
upon  Joseph's  hand,  and  arrayed  him  in  vestures  of 
fine  linen,  and  put  a  gold  chain  about  his  neck. 
And  he  made  him  to  ride  in  the  second  chariot  that 
he  had  ;  and  they  cried  before  him,  '  Bow  the  knee ' ; 
and  he  made  him  ruler  over  all  the  land  of  Egypt. 
And  Pharaoh  said  unto  Joseph,  'I  am  Pharaoh,  and 
without  thee  shall  no  man  lift  up  his  hand  or  foot  in 
all  the  land  of  Egypt."  (Chap.  xli.  39-44.) 

Here,  then,  was  exaltation  of  no  ordinary  kind. 
Contrast  this  with  the -pit  and  the  dungeon;,  and 
mark  the  chain  of  events  by  which  it  was  all  brought 
about,  and  you  have,  at  once,  a  marked  exhibition 
of  the  hand  of  God,  and  a  striking  type  of  the  suf- 
ferings and  glory  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Joseph 
was  taken  from  the  pit  and  the  dungeon,  into  which 
he  had  been  brought  by  the  envy  of  his  brethren, 
and  the  fals&  judgment  of  the  Gentile,  to  be  ruler 
over  the  whole  land  of  Egypt ;  and  not  only  so,  but 
to  be  the  channel  of  blessing  and  the  sustainer  of 
life  to  Israel  and  the  whole  earth.  This  is  all  typical 
of  Christ ;  indeed,  a  type  could  hardly  be  more  per- 
fect. We  see  a  man  laid,  to  all  intents  and  purposes, 
in  the  place  of  death,  by  the  hand  of  man,  and  then 
raised  up  by  the  hand  of  God,  and  set  in  dignity 
and  glory.  "Ye  men  of  Israel,  hear  these  words: 


324  GENESIS. 

Jesus  of  Nazareth,  a  Man  approved  of  God  among 
you  by  miracles  and  wonders  and  signs,  which  God 
did  by  Him  in  the  midst  of  you,  as  ye  yourselves 
also  know  ;  Him,  being  delivered  by  the  determinate 
counsel  and  foreknowledge  of  God,  ye  have  taken, 
and  by  wicked  hands  have  crucified  and  slain  ;  whom 
God  hath  raised  up,  having  loosed  the  pains  of  death  ; 
because  it  was  not  possible  that  He  should  be  holden 
of  it,"  (Actsii.  22-24.) 

But  there  are  two  points  in  Joseph's  histoiy  which, 
together  with  what  has  been  noticed,  render  the  type 
remarkably  perfect ;  I  allude  to  his  marriage  with  a 
stranger,  in  chapter  xli,  and  his  interview  with  his 
brethren,  in  chapter  xlv.  The  following  is  the  order 
of  events: — Joseph  presents  himself  to  his  brethren 
as  one  sent  by  the  father ;  they  reject  him,  and,  so 
far  as  lies  in  them,  put  him  in  the  place  of  death ; 
God  takes  him  up  from  thence,  and  raises  him  to  a 
position  of  highest  dignity :  thus  exalted,  he  gets  a 
bride  ;  and  when  his  brethren  according  to  the  flesh 
are  thoroughly  broken  and  prostrate  before  him,  he 
makes  himself  known  to  them,  tranquilizes  their 
hearts,  and  brings  them  into  blessing ;  he  then  be- 
comes the  channel  of  blessing  to  them  and  to  the 
whole  world. 

I  shall  just  make  a  few  remarks  on  Joseph's 
marriage  and  the  restoration  of  his  brethren.  The 
strange  wife  shadows  forth  the  Church.  Christ  pre- 
sented Himself  to  the  Jews,  and  being  rejected, 
took  His  seat  on  high,  and  sent  down  the  Holy 
Ghost  to  gather  out  an  elect  Church,  composed  of 


CHAPTERS    XXXVII-L.  325 

Jew  and  Gentile,  to  be  united  with  Him  in  heavenly 
glory.  The  doctrine  of  the  Church  has  al read y  been 
dwelt  upon,  in  our  remarks  on  chapter  xxiv,  but  one 
or  two  points  remain  to  be  noticed  here.  And,  first, 
we  may  observe,  that  Joseph's  Egyptian  bride  was 
intimately  associated  with  him  in  his  glory.*  She, 
as  being  part  of  himself,  shared  in  all  that  was  his. 
Moreover,  she  occupied  a  place  of  nearness  and 
intimacy  known  only  to  herself.  Thus  it  is  with 
the  Church,  the  bride  of  the  Lamb.  She  is  gathered 
to  Christ  to  be  the  sharer,  at  once,  of  His  rejection 
and  His  glory.  It  is  Christ's  position  which  gives 
character  to  the  position  of  the  Church,  and  her 
position  should  ever  give  character  to  her  walk.  If 
we  are  gathered  to  Christ,  it  is  as  exalted  in  glory, 
and  not  as  humbled  cUxwn  here.  ""Henceforth  know 
we  no  man  after  the  flesh ;  yea,  though  we  have 
known  Christ  after  the  flesh,  yet  now  henceforth 
know  we  Him  no  more."  (2  Cor.  v.  16.)  The 
Church's  gathering-point  is  Christ  in  glory. — "I,  if 
I  be  lifted  up  from  the  earth,  will  draw  all  unto 
Me."  (Jolmxii.  32.) 

There  is  far  more  of  practical  value  in  the  clear 
apprehension  of  this  principle  than  might,  at  first 
sight,  appear.  It  is  ever  the  aim  of  Satan,  as  it  is 
the  tendency  of  our  hearts,  to  lead  us  to  stop  short 
of  God's  mark  in  everything,  and  especially  in  the 
centre  of  our  unity  as  Christians.  It  is  a  popular 


*  Joseph's  wife  sots  forth  the  Church  :is  unitoil  to  Christ  in  His 
glory:  Moses'  wife  presents  the  Church  as  united  to  Christ  in  Jlis 
rejection. 


326  GENESIS. 

sentiment,  that  "the  blood  of  the  Lamb  is  the  union 
of  saints,"  i.  e.,  it  is  the  blood  which  forms  their 
centre  of  unity.  Now,  that  it  is  the  infinitely  pre- 
cious blood  of  Christ  which  sets  us  individually  as 
worshipers  in  the  presence  of  God,  is  blessedly  true. 
The  blood,  therefore,  forms  the  divine  basis  of  our 
fellowship  with  God.  But  when  we  come  to  speak 
of  the  centre  of  our  unity  as  a  church,  we  must  see 
that  the  Holy  Ghost  gathers  us  to  the  Person  of  a 
risen  and  glorified  Christ ;  and  this  grand  truth 
gives  character — high  and  holy  character — to  our 
association  as  Christians.  If  we  take  lower  ground 
than  this,  we  must  inevitably  form  a  sect  or  an  ism. 
If  we  gather  round  an  ordinance  however  important, 
or  round  a  truth  however  indisputable,  we  make 
something  less  than  Christ  our  centre. 

Hence,  it  is  more  important  to  ponder  the  practi- 
cal consequences  which  flow  out  of  the  truth  of  our 
being  gathered  to  a  risen  and  glorified  Head  in  the 
heavens.  If  Christ  were  on  earth,  we  should  be 
gathered  to  Him  here ;  but  inasmuch  as  He  is  hid- 
den in  the  heavens,  the  Church  takes  her  character 
from  His  position  there.  Hence,  Christ  could  say, 
" They  are  not  of  the  world,. even  as  I  am  not  of 
the  world  ;  "  -and  again,  "For  their  sakes  I  sanctify 
Myself,  that  they  also  might  be  sanctified  through 
the  truth."  (John  xvii.  16, 19.)  So  also,  in  1  Peter, 
we  read,  "To  whom  coming,  as  unto  a  living  Stone, 
disallowed  indeed  of  men,  but  chosen  of  God  and 
precious ;  jre  also,  as  lively  stones,  are  built  up  a 
spiritual  house,  a  holy  priesthood,  to  offer  up  spirit- 


CHAPTERS    XXXVII-L.  327 

ual  sacrifices,  acceptable  to  God  by  Jesus  Christ." 
(Chap.  ii.  4,  5.)  If  we  are  gathered  to  Christ,  we 
must  be  gathered  to  Him  as  He  is  and  where  He  is  ; 
and  the  more  the  Spirit  of  God  leads  our  souls  into 
the  understanding  of  this,  the  more  clearly  we  shall 
see  the  character  of  walk  that  becomes  us.  Joseph's 
bride  was  united  to  him,  not  in  the  pit  or  the  dun- 
geon, but  in  the  dignity  and  glory  of  his  position  in 
Egypt ;  and,  in  her  case,  we  can  have  no  difficulty 
in  perceiving  the  vast  difference  between  the  two 
positions. 

But  further,  we  read,  "And  unto  Joseph  were 
born  two  sons,  before  the  years  of  famine  came." 
There  was  a  time  of  trouble  coming ;  but  previous 
thereto,  the  fruit  of  his  union  appeared.  The  chil- 
dren whom  God  had  given  him  were  called  into 
existence  previous  to  this  time  of  trial.  So  will  it 
be  in  reference  to  the  Church.  All  the  members 
thereof  will  be  called  out,  the  whole  body  will  be 
completed  and  gathered  to  the  Head  in  heaven, 
previous  to  "the  great  tribulation"  which  shall 
come  upon  all  the  earth. 

We  shall  now  turn,  for  a  little,  to  Joseph's  inter- 
view with  his  brethren,  in  which  we  shall  find  some 
points  of  resemblance  to  Israel's  history  in  the 
latter  da}r.  During  the  period  that  Joseph  was 
hidden  from  the  view  of  his  brethren,  these  latter 
were  called  to  pass  through  deep  and  searching 
trial — through  intensely  painful  exercises  of  con- 
science. One  of  these  exercises  is  poured  out  in 
the  following  words :  '  'And  they  said  one  to  another, 
22 


328  GENESIS. 

'  We  are  verily  guilty  concerning  our  brother,  in  that 
we  saw  the  anguish  of  his  soul,  when  he  besought 
us,  and  ice  would  not  hear;  therefore  is  this  distress 
come  upon  us.'  And  Reuben  answered  them,  say- 
ing, 'Spake  I  not  unto  you,  saying,  Do  not  sin 
against  the  child  ;  and  ye  would  not  hear?  therefore, 
behold,  also,  his  blood  is  required.'"  (Chap.  xlii. 
21,  22.) 

Again,  in  chapter  xliv,  we  read,  "And  Judah  said, 
'What  shall  we  say  unto  my  lord  ?  What  shall  we 
speak  ?  or  how  shall  we  clear  ourselves  ?  God  hath 
found  out  the  iniquity  of  thy  servants.'  "  None  can 
teach  like  God.  He  alone  can  produce  in  the  con- 
science the  true  sense  of  sin,  and  bring  the  soul 
down  into  the  profound  depths  of  its  own  condition 
in  His  presence.  This  is  all  His  own  work.  Men 
run  on  in  their  career  of  guilt,  heedless  of  every- 
thing, until  the  arrow  of  the  Almighty  pierces  their 
conscience,  and  then  they  are  led  into  those  search- 
ings  of  heart  and  intense  exercises  of  soul  which 
can  only  find  relief  in  the  rich  resources  of  redeem- 
ing love.  Joseph's  brethren  had  no  conception  of 
all  that  was  to  flow  to  them  from  their  actings  toward 
him.  "They  took  him  and  cast  him  into  a  pit  .  . 
.  .  .  and  they  sat  down  to  eat  bread."  "Woe  to 
them  ....  that  drink  wine  in  bowls,  and  anoint 
themselves  with  the  chief  ointments ;  but  they  are 
not  grieved  for  the  affliction  of  Joseph."  (Amos 
vi.  6.) 

However,  God  produced  grief  of  heart,  and  ex- 
ercises of  conscience,  and  that  in  a  most  wonderful 


CHAPTERS    XXXVII-L.  329 

way.  Years  rolled  on,  and  these  brethren  might 
have  vainly  imagined  that  all  was  right;  but,  then, 
"seven  years  of  plenty,  and  seven  years  of  scar- 
city"! What  did  they  mean?  Who  sent  them? 
And  for  what  were  they  designed  ?  Admirable 
providence  !  Unsearchable  wisdom  !  The  famine 
reaches  to  Canaan,  and  the  calls  of  hunger  actually 
bring  the  guilty  brethren  to  the  feet  of  the  injured 
Joseph!  How  marked  is  the  display  of  God's  own 
hand  in  all  this  !  There  they  stand,  with  the  arrow 
of  conviction  thrust  through  and  through  their  con- 
sciences, in  the  presence  of  the  man  whom  they  had 
"with  wicked  hands,"  cast  into  the  pit.  Surely 
their  sin  had  found  them  out;  but  it  was  in  the 
presence  of  Joseph.  Blessed  place  ! 

"Then  Joseph  could  not  refrain  himself  before 
all  them  that  stood  by  him ;  and  he  cried,  '  Cause 
every  man  to  go  out  from  me.'  And  there  stood  no 
man  with  him,  while  Joseph  made  himself  known 
unto  his  brethren."  (Chap.  xlv.  1.).  No  stranger 
was  allowed  to  witness  this  sacred  scene.  What 
stranger  could  understand  or  appreciate  it  ?  We 
are  here  called  to  witness,  as  it  were,  divinely- 
wrought  conviction  in  the  presence  of  divine  grace ; 
and,  we  may  say,  when  these  two  come  together, 
there  is  an  easy  settlement  of  every  question. 

"And  Joseph  said  unto  his  brethren,  '  Come  near 
to  me,  I  pray  you.'  And  they  came  near.  And  he 
said,  'I  am  Joseph  your  brother,  whom  ye  sold  into 
Egypt.  Now,  therefore,  be  not  grieved,  nor  angry 
with  yourselves,  that  ye  sold  me  hither ;  for  God 


330  GENESIS. 

did  send  me  before  3^011,  to  preserve  life.  .  .  .  And 
God  sent  me  before  you  to  preserve  you  a  posterity 
in  the  earth,  and  to  save  your  lives  by  a  great  deliv- 
•erance.  So  now  it  was  not  you  sent  me  hither,  but 
God.' '  This  is  grace  indeed,  setting  the  convicted 
conscience  perfectly  at  rest.  The  brethren  had  al- 
ready most  thoroughly  condemned  themselves,  and 
hence  Joseph  had  only  to  pour  in  the  blessed  balm 
into  their  broken  hearts.  This  is  all  sweetly  typical 
of  God's  dealings  with  Israel  in  the  latter  day,  when 
"they  shall  look  upon  Him  whom  they  have  pierced, 
and  mourn."  Then  they  shall  prove  the  reality 
of  divine  grace,  and  the  cleansing  efficacy  of  that 
"fountain  which  shall  be  opened  to  the  house  of 
David,  and  to  the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem,  for  sin 
and  for  uncleanness."  (Zech.  xiii.  1.) 

In  the  third  chapter  of  Acts,  we  find  the  Spirit  of 
God  in  Peter  seeking  to  produce  this  divine  convic- 
tion in  the  consciences  of  the  Jews. — "The  God  of 
Abraham,  and  of  Isaac,  and  of  Jacob,  the  God  of 
our  fathers,  hath  glorified  His  Son  Jesus  ;  whom  ye 
delivered  up,  and  denied  Him  in  the  presence  of 
Pilate,  when  he  was  determined  to  let  Him  go.  But 
ye  denied  the  Holy  One  and  the  just,  and  desired  a 
murderer  to  be  granted  unto  you ;  and  killed  the 
Prince  of  Life,  whom  God  hath  raised  from  the 
dead,  whereof  we  are  witnesses."  These  statements 
were  designed  to  elicit  from  the  hearts  and  lips  of 
the  hearers  the  confession  made  by  Joseph's  breth- 
ren— "We  are  verily  guilty."  Then  follows  the 
grace.  "And  now,  brethren,  I  wot  that  through 


CHAPTERS    XXXVII-L.  331 

ignorance  ye  did  it,  as  did  also  your  rulers.  But 
those  things,  which  God  before  had  showed  by  the 
mouth  of  all  His  prophets,  that  Christ  should  suffer, 
He  hath  so  fulfilled.  Repent  }'e,  therefore,  and  be 
converted,  that  your  sins  may  be  blotted  out,  when 
the  times  of  refreshing  shall  come  from  the  presence 
of  the  Lord."  We  here  see,  that  although  the  Jews 
really  carried  out  the  enmity  of  their  hearts  in  the 
death  of  Christ,  as  did  also  Joseph's  brethren  in 
their  treatment  of  him,  yet  the  grace  of  God  to  each 
is  seen  in  this,  that  all  is  shown  to  be  decreed  and 
foreshown  of  God  for  their  blessing.  This  is  perfect 
grace,  surpassing  all  human  thonghf ;  and  all  that  is 
needed,  in  order  to  the  enjoyment  thereof,  is  a  con- 
science truly  convicted  by  the  truth  of  God.  Those 
who  could  say,  "We  are  verily  guilty,"  could  rightly 
understand  the  words  of  precious  grace,  "It  was 
not  you,  but  God."  Thus  it  must  ever  be.  The 
soul  that  has  thoroughly  pronounced  its  own  con- 
demnation, is  prepared  to  understand  and  appre- 
ciate God's  pardon. 

The  remaining  chapters  of  this  book  are  taken  up 
with  the  removal  of  Jacob  and  his  family  into  Egypt, 
and  their  settlement  there  ;  Joseph's  actings  during 
the  remaining  years  of  famine  ;  Jacob's  blessing  the 
twelve  patriarchs ;  his  death  and  burial.  We  shall 
not  dwell  in  detail  upon  these  things,  though  the 
spiritual  mind  may  find  much  to  feed  upon  therein.* 

*The  close  of  Jacob's  career  stands  in  most  pleasing  contrast 
with  all  the  previous  scenes  of  his  eventful  history.  It  reminds 
one  of  a  serene  evening  after  a  tempestuous  day:  the  sun,  which 
during  the  day  had  been  hidden  from  view  by  clouds,  mists  and 


332  GENESIS. 

Jacob's  groundless  fears  dissipated  by  the  sight  of 
his  son  alive,  and  exalted, — the  peculiar  grace  of 

fogs,  sets  in  majesty  and  brightness,  gilding  with  his  beams  the 
western  sky,  and  holding  out  the  cheering  prospect  of  a  bright  to- 
morrow. Thus  is  it  with  our  aged  patriarch.  The  supplanting,  the 
bargain-making,  the  cunning,  the  management,  the  shifting,  the 
shuffling,  the  unbelieving  selfish  fears,— all  those  dark  clouds  of 
nature  and  of  earth  seem  to  have  passed  away,  and  he  comes  forth, 
in  all  the  calm  elevation  of  faith,  to  bestow  blessings,  and  impart 
dignities,  in  that  holy  skillfulness  which  communion  with  God  can 
alone  impart. 

Though  nature's  eyes  are  dim,  faith's  vision  is  sharp.  He  is  not 
to  be  deceived  as  to  the  relative  positions  assigned  to  Ephraim 
and  Manasseh  in  the  counsels  of  God.  He  lias  not,  like  his  father 
Isaac,  in  chapter  xxvii,  to  "tremble  very  exceedingly"  in  view  of 
an  almost  fatal  mistake.  Quite  the  reverse.  His  intelligent  reply 
to  his  less-instructed  son  is,  "I  know  it,  my  son,  I  know  it."  The 
power  of  sense  has  not,  as  in  Isaac's  case,  dimmed  his  spiritual 
vision.  He  has  been  taught,  in  the  school  of  experience,  the  im- 
portance of  keeping  close  to  the  divine  purpose,  and  nature's 
influence  cannot  move  him  from  thencs. 

In  chapter  xlviii.  11,  we  have  a  very  beautiful  example  of  the 
modo  in  which  our  God  ever  rises  above  all  our  thoughts,  and 
proves  Himself  better  than  all  our  fears.  "And  Israel  said  unto 
Joseph,  'I  had  not  thought  to  see  thy  face;  and,  lo,  God  hath 
showed  me  also  thy  seed.'  "  To  nature's  view,  Joseph  wa>  dead  ; 
whereas,  in  God's  view,  he  was  alive,  and  seated  in  the  highest 
place  of  authority,  next  the  throne.  "Eye  hath  not  seen,  nor  ear 
heard,  neither  have  entered  into  the  heart  of  man,  the  things 
which  God  hath  prepared  for  them  that  love  Him."  (1  Cor.  ii.  9.) 
Would  that  our  souls  could  rise  higher  in  their  apprehension  of 
God  and  His  ways. 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  the  way  in  which  the  titles  "Jacob" 
and  "Israel"  arc  introduced  in  the  close  of  the  book  of  Genesis; 
as,  for  example,  "  One  told  Jacob,  and  said,  'Behold,  thy  son  Joseph 
cometh  unto  thec';  and  Israel  strengthened  himself,  and  sat  upon 
the  bed."  Then,  it  is  immediately  added,  "And  Jacob  said  unto 
Joseph,  'God  Almighty  appeared  unto  me  at  Luz.' "  Now,  we 
know,  there  is  nothing  in  Scripture  without  its  specific  meaning, 
and  hence  this  interchange  of  names  contains  some  instruction. 
In  general,  it  may  be  remarked  that  "Jacob"  sets  forth  the  depth 
to  which  God  had  descended;  "Israel,"  the  height  to  Avhich  Jacob 
was  raised. 


CHAPTERS    XXXVII-L.  333 

God  seen  in  its  overruling  power,  yet  evidently 
mingled  with  judgment,  inasmuch  as  Jacob's  sons 
have  to  go  down  into  the  very  place  whither  they 
hud  sent  their  brother.  Again,  Joseph's  remarkable 
grace  throughout:  though  exalted  by  Pharaoh,  he 
hides  himself,  as  it  were,  and  binds  the  people  in 
abiding  obligation  to  the  king.  Pharaoh  says,  "Go 
to  Joseph,"  and  Joseph,  in  effect,  says,  "All  you 
have  and  all  you  are  belong  to  Pharaoh."  This  is 
sweetly  interesting,  and  leads  the  soul  on  to  that 
glorious  time  when  the  Son  of  Man  shall  take  the 
reins  of  government  into  His  own  hand,  by  divine 
appointment,  and  rule  over  the  whole  redeemed 
creation ;  His  Church — the  bride  of  the  Lamb — 
occupying  the  nearest  and  most  intimate  place, 
according  to  the  eternal  counsels.  The  house  of 
Israel,  fully  restored,  shall  be  nourished  and  sus- 
tained by  His  gracious  hand  ;  and  all  the  earth  shall 
know  the  deep  blessedness  of  being  under  His  scep- 
tre. Finally,  having  brought  everything  into  sub- 
jection, He  shall  hand  back  the  reins  of  government 
into  the  hands  of  God,  that  "He  may  be  all  in  all." 
From  all  this  we  may  form  some  idea  of  the  richness 
and  copiousness  of  Joseph's  history.  In  short,  it 
sets  before  us,  distinctly,  in  type,  the  mission  of  the 
Son  to  the  house  of  Israel,  His  humiliation  and  re- 
jection, the  deep  exercises  and  final  repentance  and 
restoration  of  Israel,  the  union  of  the  Church  with 
Christ,  His  exaltation  and  universal  government, 
and,  finally,  it  points  us  forward  to  the  time  when 
"God  shall  be  all  in  all."  It  is  quite  needless  to 


334  GENESIS. 

remark,  that  all  these  things  are  largely  taught,  and 
fully  established,  throughout  the  entire  canon  of 
inspiration ;  we  do  not,  therefore,  build  their  truth 
upon  Joseph's  history;  still  it  is  edifying  to  find 
such  early  foreshadowings  of  these  precious  truths  ; 
it  proves  to  us  the  divine  unity  which  pervades  Holy 
Scripture.  Whether  we  turn  to  Genesis  or  to  Ephe- 
sians — to  the  prophets  of  the  Old  or  those  of  the 
New  Testament — we  learn  the  same  truths.  "ALL 
SCRIPTURE  is  GIVEN  BY  INSPIRATION  OF  GOD." 


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